FOUR SUSPENDED Thomasian student activists are preparing to appeal the disciplinary sanctions imposed on them over a protest against a Philippine Air Force (PAF) exhibit at the University last April.
Student activist Raven Kristine Racelis said they are consulting their legal counsel about challenging the rulings through the University’s appeal process. She added that the students also plan to bring the concern to the Commission on Higher Education (CHED).
“I think [the appeal will be] within 10 days,” Racelis told The Flame.
READ: Artlets student slams PH Air Force for filing disciplinary case against Thomasian activists
Through separate resolutions dated Oct. 2, the University imposed suspensions on the four students and denied them the release of their certificates of good moral character. The removal of Mecaella Sean Carl Capalar as Central Student Council (CSC) public relations officer was also ordered.
Racelis received a 10-day suspension, while Behavioral Science junior Ralph Christian Manuel was sanctioned with an eight-day suspension.
Biochemistry freshman Dex Anderson Frogoso received a four-day suspension, while Capalar, a fifth-year Architecture student, received a five-day suspension.
The panel cited Capalar’s resulting ineligibility for a certificate of good moral character as the reason for her removal from the CSC.
The resolutions prescribed the suspensions for the first term of academic year 2026–2027 and warned that a repetition of the same or similar acts would be “dealt with severely.”
Under PPS No. 1032 of the 2026 student handbook, students may appeal the Office for Student Affairs’ (OSA) decisions to the Office of the Rector within 10 days of receiving the ruling. Grounds include grave abuse of discretion, serious errors in factual findings or legal conclusions, or a disproportionate or excessive penalty. The sanctions shall take effect after the allotted 10-day appeal period.
However, filing an appeal does not automatically suspend enforcement of the sanctions unless the Rector’s office directs otherwise for compelling reasons.
Courtesy and conduct
In the resolutions issued to the four students, the disciplinary panel, composed of three Student Welfare and Development coordinators, cited provisions requiring students to uphold Thomasian values and respect UST’s Catholic identity.
While recognizing the students’ constitutional rights, the panel maintained that students must exercise them according to University policies.
It said that its disciplinary action would help the students learn from their mistakes and “deter” others from committing similar acts.
According to the resolutions, the panel cited Racelis’ alleged disrespectful conduct toward PAF officers during their exchange, including aggressive finger-pointing and raising her voice. Her participation in the chanting and display of printed news materials was also cited as a basis for disciplinary action.
Meanwhile, Frogoso’s act of protesting while displaying printed materials was found to have violated UST’s rules of conduct. The freshman, who was sanctioned the least days of suspension, was described as having engaged in a peaceful discussion with a PAF officer before joining the protest.
For Manuel and Capalar, sanctions were based on the printing of news materials.
During the students’ individual case conferences on Sept. 17, they maintained that their actions constituted inquiry and peaceful dissent, according to the resolutions.
Restricting dissent?
In a video statement released on Monday, Oct. 5, Racelis urged Thomasians to oppose what she described as student repression and seek the dismissal of complaints against activists.
“By filing a case against us, this is a tactic to silence the entire community, to frighten [people] from speaking,” she said in the post.
Frogoso and Manuel also criticized the University’s handling of the complaints, saying that the case conferences were one-sided.
“We already established that the military gave us no remorse for the red-tagging, surveillance, and intimidation. Yet, their stance remains firm that we should be disciplined for our wrongdoing so that it ‘also [serves] as a deterrent to others who may be similarly minded,’” he told The Flame.
“While the Pope stands in the forefront of condemning wars and genocides, UST is being subservient to the violent state apparatus enforced by the military. This act of siding with fascists is, again, a complete betrayal of Christian humanism and the Catholic teachings they offer to its students,” he added.
Manuel also said that students may fear speaking up due to the administration’s actions.
“We can clearly see and deeply feel its chilling effect on Thomasians — they are afraid to speak up because sanctions are imposed if you do,” he told The Flame.
The Flame has reached out to the Office for Student Affairs (OSA) but has yet to receive a reply as of writing. F — R.T. Dinglasan and B.J.M. Paz with reports from Sheridan Joy Delfino and Alden Stephen Texon
