Insights and opinions from our contributors on the current issues happening in the region

 

Condemnation on the brutal assassination of Prof. Jose Ma. B. Cui of COURAGE-NS

January 20, 2007

We, in the regional council of the human rights alliance KATUNGOD-Sinirangan Bisayas condemn in the strongest possible terms the assassination of Prof. Jose Ma. B. Cui of the University of Eastern Philippines, the chairperson of UEP Employees Association (UEPEA)-Confederation for Unity, Recognition and Advancement of Government Employees (COURAGE) and former secretary-general of the human rights group KATUNGOD-Northern Samar last January 19, 2007 at about 3:45 pm in front of his students at the Engineering Building of the university in the town of Catarman in Northern Samar.

Two motorcycle-riding men gunned him while he was administering the examinations of his History Class.  He sustained two (2) fatal gunshot wounds – one in the head and another in the chest that led to his instantaneous death.

According to reports from our counterpart in Northern Samar, the perpetrators drove to the direction of Mondragon town where a military camp is located about two kilometers from the university campus (in Brgy. San Agustin, Mondragon).

Prof. Cui is a known peace-loving citizen, an advocate of human rights and civil liberties in the province of Northern Samar.  He served as KATUNGOD-NS secretary-general from 1998-2004.

It can be remembered that during the terror-reign of Palparan, he was a subject of the smear campaign of the military, maliciously dragging his name as a high-ranking member of the New People’s Army (NPA). As matter of fact, flyers were distributed and posters were posted by military men sometime in November 2004 maligning his name.

His direct involvement in the human rights issues, employees welfare and anti-corruption stand could have made him a target of the “neutralization” campaign of the AFP in its Operational Plan (Oplan) Bantay Laya 2.

He was also charged with libel by the then commanding officer of the 63rd IB Col. Manuelito Usi.

He was also listed no. 2 in the military’s order of battle (OB).

We are calling on the all peace-loving Filipinos, Samarnons and people of Eastern Visayas to oppose and condemn this incident of killing and all other state-sponsored human rights violations.

Prof. Cui is the 105th victim of political killing in Eastern Visayas (from 2001-2007).  This is a systematic phenomenon happening under the present administration of Mrs. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.  This is a renewed terror attack as the regime implements a renewed campaign dubbed Oplan Bantay Bayan 2.

We enjoin the Commission on Human Rights (CHR) to make a thorough investigation on this incident and all other victims of extra-judicial killings in region.  The CHR should extend help to the victims that they found justice amidst the climate of injustice and terrorism perpetrated by the soldiers of the AFP and the Arroyo regime.

JUSTICE FOR PROF. JOSE MA. B. CUI!

JUSTICE FOR ALL THE VICTIMS OF HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATIONS!

STOP THE KILLINGS IN EASTERN VISAYAS AND IN THE PHILIPPINES NOW!

 

(Sgd.) KATRINA R. CASTILLO
Katungod-Sinirangan Bisayas
Spokesperson

 

 

 

 

Justice for Ka Agoy and Jose Lorena!

A Press Statement by Alliance for Nationalism and Democracy (ANAD)
January 21, 2006

The Alliance for Nationalism and Democracy (ANAD), in strongest terms, condemn the treacherous killings of Augusto “Ka Agoy” Daclitan, 55 yrs. old, ANAD regional coordinator for Eastern Visayas last January 17, and Jose Lorena, a freelance broadcaster in Albay and one of the pillars of the Kilusang Kontra Komunista (KKK), an affiliate of ANAD, last January 18, in Catbalogan, Samar and Daraga, Albay, respectively. They are the 17th and 18th ANAD volunteers whose lives were sacrificed and offered for the defense and protection of our Motherland and freedom.

Clearly, ANAD accuses Jose Ma. Sison, chairman of the demonic Maoist Communist Party of the Philippines; Luis Jalandoni – head of the Maoist communist National Democratic Front; Gregorio “Ka Roger” Rosal and their minions as primary responsible in the deaths of the two ANAD leaders and volunteers.

Both Ka Agoy and Lorena were former communist rebels who saw the light of freedom and peace. Ka Agoy was felled by a bullet to his nape, by an NPA assassin inside Catbalogan’s Imelda Park, in front of the Western Samar Capitol Bldg., while Lorena was shot by one of the three-man NPA hit team that entered his food store pretending to negotiate for the surrender of an NPA member. Their peaceful campaign of initiating pro-democracy activities, without the use of firearms, is a manifestation of their sincere efforts and commitment to wage a peaceful education campaign against the deceit, lies, intimidation, and harassments masterfully employed by the Godless, inhuman, and violent Maoist communist ideology on our people.

The decimation of the Maoist communist NPAs ranks and the anti-Maoist communist awareness among the people of Samar and Albay are living proofs of Daclitan’s and Lorena’s effective pro-democracy efforts in their respective areas.

The surviving families, relatives, and friends of Ka Agoy and Lorena loudly and strongly cry for justice. But could they ever get justice from persons who are committed to kill? Justice could only be attained if we all join hands in calling on the Maoist communist NPA to do their share by making those responsible of that dastardly act answer for their crimes.

We urge KARAPATAN, BAYAN, KMU, EMJP, PCPR, and all sectoral front organizations of the Maoist communist National Democratic Front to call on the comrades in the Communist Party of the Philippines(CPP) to hand down the penalty of death to those responsible in killing Daclitan and Lorena. This they must have to do to prove their sincerity as they have constantly called to put an end to the spate of killings happening in the country.

Their claim as defenders of human rights must now be shown, to all Filipinos. The Maoist communist sectoral front organizations must shed the cloak of deception and lies and must work hand in hand with ANAD in seeking justice for those whose life were snapped by the guns, bullets, machetes, and hammers wielded by NPA butchers!

Indeed, the Maoist communist NPA hitmen made Ka Agoy and Lorena martyrs of freedom and democracy. Your deaths will serve as our beacon as we stand committed in our advocacy of protecting and preserving our freedoms, democratic institutions for our people.

 

 

 

 

On the death of a peace advocate; on the fight against terror

By Philippine Information Agency (PIA 8)
January 19, 2007

The heinous killing of a noted anti-Communist leader in Catbalogan by two young assassins allegedly members of the Sparrow Unit of the CPP-NPA operating in the area, is a wake up call for the immediate passage of the anti-terror bill which have been for quite sometime, pending in Congress.

While the government operatives, the Armed Forces of the Philippines, continues in its relentless pursuit on the agents of terror, the passage of the Anti-terror Bill will complement the government’s anti-terrorism campaign.

The victim, whose only sin is his being an advocate of peace and anti-terror, is Augusto S. Daclitan, 55 years old and a resident of Barangay Canlapwas in Catbalogan, Samar. He is the Regional Coordinator in Region 8 and Operations Officer of the anti-Communist group Alliance for Nationalism and Democracy (ANAD) that is instrumental in assisting the government in its anti-insurgency campaign.

Daclitan, just recently, with the help of the local police, successfully convinced the leaders of the more than 10 youth gangs who have been sowing violence at the capital town and united them into a single youth group that is now called the United Youth of Catbalogan.

The relentless pursuit of the military on the agents of terror, is producing positive results. While these inspire the Government to have greater resolve in move forward in strengthening domestic, regional and global security, these cause despair on the part of the terror groups.

The treacherous assassination of Agoy Daclitan is a proof on how desperate the communist terror groups are in the Region. Allegedly, someone called him up by phone and made an appointment to meet with him for some official business at the Capitol Park before 7:00 o’clock of January 17.

When he arrived at the Park, however, one of the assassins shot him in the head. When he fell, the other one fired at him on the back. This manner of killing the anit-communist leader, which was done in a crowded park, was a typical example of the insurgents’ strategy to sow public fear and use it as a propaganda tool, the local police said.

The Government is determined to finish the job of cracking down until all the terrorists and their clandestine cells are accounted for, with a hand of steel in order to usher in a genuine and durable peace and economic development.

Congress will immediately pass the anti-terror bill and give more teeth in the Government’s crusade against anti terrorism. All the sectors of the community must join hands in not allowing the communist terrorist from sowing fear and terror in their respective communities.

This is the only way, one can say that the death of Agoy Daclitan, the peace advocate shall not have been in vain. This is the only way of ensuring that no one, no peace-loving citizen will suffer the fate of Agoy Daclitan.

 

 

 

 

Asian Human Rights Commission condemns the execution of Saddam Hussein

A Statement by the Asian Human Rights Commission
December 31, 2006

The Asian Human Rights Commission condemns the execution of Saddam Hussein as an act that demonstrates the failure of the international community to deal with dictators within the framework of law, while not deviating from international norms and standards.

The fact that the United States of America and the United Kingdom supported this act is a sad reflection on the disregard of the very norms and standards on which the post-Second World War foundations of human rights are based.

That the dictator should be punished is a premise that is now well established. However, the manner in which dictators are punished is the crux of the matter. In the process of punishing dictators if the very process of democratization and humanization is undermined, the actual results of such punishments do not help to establish higher norms and standards. Barbarity being met with barbarity does not help civilization to progress. An illegal war under international law, undermining the fundamental premise on which the Universal Declaration of Human Rights was adopted, makes this situation even worse. Had the United States ratified the Rome Statute on the International Criminal Court (ICC) and if Saddam Hussein was prosecuted and punished by such a process Iraq and all other countries would have learned the lessons of the new international law.

As a new year begins, those who are committed to upholding the fundamental premises of human rights philosophy and law must reflect on the challenges posed by new tendencies that oppose the most basic aspects of human rights.

 

 

 

 

The National Road to watch

By CHITO DELA TORRE
December 27, 2006

President Arroyo’s go-signal for the immediate re-construction of the severely dilapidated Calbiga-Buray portion of the national highway appears to raise hopes and, sadly, a false expectation at the same time.

The hopes are mostly for operators of buses, vans and commercial and public utility vehicles that regularly take up the Maharlika road to travel north and south and vice-versa.  Equally elated by the news are regular commuters, most of them government employees who find it life-saving to go home on afternoons from serving the public in Calbayog City or Catbalogan and other towns near Tacloban. A repaired road will mean many things to them, but mostly comfort in traveling. To government development planners, it will open propositions to hasten the development of eco-tourism areas that now, all over the world, are a profitable investment.

However, other un-ambitious Samarnons appear unaffected by the good tidings. Arroyo’s announcement has been confusing to them. There is for instance the belief that the road improvement priority will re-channel funds originally intended for other purposes that identified other fund sources other than those for the highway repair.

Basaynons had for many years, since the pre-Marcosian martial law regime, been aching to have roads crisscrossing their interior barrios – a demand seen by them as the surest facile way to end military claims during martial law years and until now that Basey is a hotbed of insurgency and that most of its barrio and mountain people are rebels and supporters of the New People’s Army if not otherwise its active members. To them, it is also the only first-step ingredient towards introducing the fundamentals of massive growth and development. The road problem had been repeatedly compromised by those who had, and who have just lately, been given the authority to look after it in Basey – they, mostly politicians and the corrupt-minded government personalities. Less than point one percent of the expressed needs for roads in that town had been realized, and today, via the INFRES, that invisible percentage is melting in pocketed money.

The national government before Arroyo, built a road that would be for the convenience of Tacloban City and the Leyteños from Basey to Sohoton to Borongan, but environmentalists and the procrastinators of rural development from among the Department of Environment and Natural Resources officials denied that aspiration, to the total dismay of the Department of Public Works and Highways, the local government officials and constituents of Basey, and the military who shared the universal belief that with the road completed, as originally conceived, Basey would be liberated from the conscience of poverty and insurgency.

Instead, the Basey-Balangiga road, via Marabut, was built. Then, Provincial Governor Mila Tan wanted to build provincial roads within Basey, but last September she wanted to revert the funds for those roads, and that could have materialized had not Vice-Governor Jess Redaja and the conscientious members of the Samar Sangguniang Panlalawigan foiled all attempts by Provincial ABC Federation President Joseph Escober, who seems to be the governor’s dummy in the SP, in quick in response to a fax message of objection from Basey Mayor Vic Labuac.

For another, Sangguniang bayan member Anie Ogrimen had looked the other way. She cried last August when someone golden-hearted in Malacañang told her over the cellular phone that her earlier request for the improvement of the Basey-Sohoton road  was approved and that the improvement, costing at least P130 million, would consist of asphalting the facility from the point of Balantak tourism site up to the poblacion. But last October 16’s order of Pres. Arroyo in Calbayog City for the road repair to start seemed to some Basaynons to be a signal to stop the asphalting, to stop the INFRES, and to nip in the bud all other demands for road building in Basey. Bumming up the false perception is the fast-coming glow of Senatorial, congressional, provincial, city and municipal elections.

That may not be entirely correct. But perhaps Presidential Assistant Vic Domingo should go to Basey, talk to a large number of people, and assure them that the road projects originally announced as already funded, or on the blueprint, will go as planned, beginning November this year, and that politics has nothing to do here.

Meanwhile, many had been assured last year that the bad road from Calbiga up to Catbalogan and then up to Calbayog would be rehabilitated the sturdier way. Would that now wait until the elections in May 2007 will be over? There was no clear detail about it during the Arroyo visit in Calbayog, but I am very certain that Calbayog Mayor Mel Sarmiento will tick the ribs of Malacañang so that the massive road reconstruction between Calbiga and his very own city will be a reality.

 

 

 

 

An improved criminal justice system is key to upholding human rights

A Statement by the Asian Human Rights Commission
December 8, 2006

“Cases of torture and enforced disappearance have become a way of life in the Philippines…”

The Philippines in recent times has been plagued by widespread and systematic violations of human rights, which include unabated extrajudicial killings, torture and enforced disappearances, among others, that are occurring in an increasingly unexplained fashion. The sense of frustration and distrust of the victims and their families that they will ever attain justice is the result of flawed and defective policing and judicial systems. The possibility for victims to seek redress and justice is often denied due to poor police investigations, a non-functioning witness protection programme, delays in the adjudication of cases and the absence of enabling laws.

While the government claims to uphold and protect human rights, its actions do not live up to this claim. The government does not come close to providing what is required and urgently needed. How can justice be served, for instance, if investigations are flawed and defective? There have been cases where the police have declared cases solved without having conducted thorough investigations. They are unable to protect or afford security to witnesses and those facing threats but instead put the blame on the victims for not cooperating with them. Once the police are able to identify the suspects and file charges in court, regardless of whether the suspects are arrested or evidence they have gathered can be used effectively in court, they consider the case solved. It is on this flawed premise that the police measure their performance and a high crime solution rate.

Police investigations are an extremely important factor in seeking justice and redress. In the Philippines, however, poor and incomplete police investigations have become a factor as to why seeking justice is extremely difficult and cases do not succeed in court. A number of cases have been recorded where victims have not been able to even file charges in court as a result of these failures by the police. Not only are the police accused of such failings, however, but in some cases the police themselves have been accused of either being involved or of conspiring to commit gross human rights violations.

Although the police are among the essential pillars of the criminal justice system, the experience of human rights victims confirms that it is impossible to seek justice and redress if the current practice of the police is allowed to continue or be tolerated. In reality, the moral and investigative credibility of the police towards the victims to deliver justice and protect human rights is waning if not already lost. This failure was manifested by the number of task forces it created to investigate cases of extrajudicial killings. One such body is Task Force Usig, which has been unable to obtain conclusive findings to identify and arrest perpetrators and warrant a strong case in court.

Even if cases are filed in court though, victims are still confronted with the common problem of long delays in the adjudication of their cases. In the Philippines, the poorly resourced and understaffed prosecution offices and court branches are unable to effectively perform their duties due to heavy workloads. It is extremely alarming though that the government has not done enough to improve these institutions and make them more effective. This neglect creates and nurtures a negative perception and deep distrust towards the prosecution system among the country’s citizens.

Not only are the victims confronted with the dilemma of poor police investigations and delays in the adjudication of their cases, but they also have to endure threats to their lives while seeking justice. They themselves have to ensure their security given the inability of the prosecution system to do so, in particular the Department of Justice (DoJ). Thus, a mixture of poor investigations, delays in the adjudication of cases and the absence of protection adds to the threats that the victims and their families feel and denies them the possibility to seek justice and redress. Therefore, on what basis can the government claim to uphold protection for human rights if it is unable to adequately address these basic issues? The increasingly alarming cases of violations and abuses have long been traced to these problems.

The Philippine government perhaps believes that it gained credibility for the protection of human rights with its election to seats on two main organs of the United Nations, the Human Rights Council and the Economic and Social Council, as the requirement for election to these bodies is for the state to have upheld the “highest standards and norms” of human rights. The government’s election, however, does not exonerate it from its bleak human rights record and poor implementation of the international human rights covenants and conventions, in particular Article 2 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), which calls for the “implementation of rights”. The ongoing deterioration of human rights in the country clearly speaks though of the complete absence of remedies for victims whose rights are violated by legislative and judicial means.

On what basis can the government claim that it religiously complies with the provisions of the ICCPR and other international human rights instruments when it cannot effectively and adequately implement the Witness Protection, Security and Benefit Act (RA 6981)? Victims who survive atrocities, families of the deceased, witnesses and those facing threats are being killed or continuously attacked or harassed while the government, meanwhile, has not done enough to effectively implement this law. Not only existing laws are not being implemented effectively, however, for there are also no laws to prosecute perpetrators of gross abuses of rights, in particular torture and enforced disappearance. On what grounds, once again, can the government claim that it upholds protection and respect for human rights when domestic legislation as required by the ICCPR of the state party are not acted upon? Often what the government has done is to please the international community by its rhetoric, but, in reality, victims and their families are systematically denied the possibility of redress.

Cases of torture and enforced disappearance have become a way of life in the Philippines. Torture victims, whether their torture was politically motivated or not, do not have a venue where they can file complaints for the violations committed upon them. The police, military and other government security forces are committing brutal acts of torture with impunity. They cannot be prosecuted because the act of torture itself is not a crime in the country. Although the Constitution prohibits the use of torture and the government is a state party to the U.N. Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CAT), no venue or mechanism exists where victims can seek redress and justice. Although there is a law that provides compensation for torture, the absence of an enabling domestic law on torture, which defines the crime itself and provisions for compensation, makes it difficult for victims to obtain compensation. In practice, victims do not obtain compensation.

Similarly, the absence of an enabling law on enforced disappearances makes it difficult for the families and relatives of the disappeared to locate their loved ones. The police do not conduct investigations on disappearance cases unless dead bodies are recovered; and even if they do provide assistance, they often refuse to cooperate with the families of the disappeared in instances where they are accused of holding disappeared victims in their custody. Consequently, families of the disappeared frequently have no options but to monitor the media, hoping there are reports of the recovery of a body or the whereabouts of their relatives, dead or alive.

Can the government claim to uphold human rights when, in fact, its inaction to ensure the enactment of domestic enabling laws results in the systematic violation of rights? The absence of a mechanism to seek redress is actually the result of the government’s failure to comply with international human rights conventions and covenants.

On December 10, the international community will observe Human Rights Day. In the Philippines, survivors and the families of victims of human rights violations that occur on a daily basis deserve clear explanations as to why the government should not be condemned for this systematic failure. It must also give a sufficient explanation why it should not be expelled from sitting at the table of the U.N. Human Rights Council and the Economic and Social Council given its bleak human rights records. In no circumstances can a country like the Philippines with such a poor human rights record be allowed to continue sitting on these U.N. bodies. It dishonours the very reason why these bodies were created.

The government must be held liable for its obvious failure to implement the provisions of Article 2 of the ICCPR and to human rights conventions and covenants to which it is a state party. There cannot be genuine protection and implementation of human rights unless the Philippine government’s criminal justice system – the police, prosecution and the judiciary – is improved. Unless the government has the political will is able to seriously improve its criminal justice system and the rule of law, there cannot be genuine implementation and protection of human rights. Any claims by the government to have upheld human rights are meaningless for the victims.

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) calls upon the international community to once again register its unity and participate in the human rights movement that advances the protection of human rights and democracy of the Filipino people. This is a critical time for Filipinos, and the international community must make its presence felt in that they are one with Filipino people by helping to expose these continuing atrocities and the excessive violations of rights occurring within the country on a daily basis. Unless the government is held accountable for their acts and the victims are given the possibility to seek redress, there cannot be genuine implementation of human rights. The failure of the government to effectively arrest this serious and critical situation is dragging the country towards the brink of a human rights crisis and disaster.

 

   

 

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