Court demands that Philippine Armed Forces release three kidnapped persons.

This is just one example of the AFP's violation of rights. As in the U.S. it is done as part of a war on terror or in the Philippines case against the NPA (New People's Army). Critics claim that the AFP often is involved in the killing of activists. Kidnapping was even more rife in some countries in South America during leftist insurrections there and also as part of the Pinochet repression in Chile. In Argentina too there are hundreds of disappeared.




CA to AFP: Produce2 abducted UP studesSays new evidence show they are held by Army
BY EVANGELINE DE VERA
REVERSING its decision, the Court of Appeals yesterday ruled there is sufficient evidence to prove that the Army’s 7th Infantry Division abducted and continues to have custody of the two University of the Philippines students and a farmer who have all been missing since June 2006.
The CA’s Special Former 11th Division, in a 33-page decision, ordered the Armed Forces to release Sherlyn Cadapan and Karen Empeno, as well as farmer Manuel Merino, who were abducted allegedly by military men on June 26, 2006 in Hagonoy, Bulacan on the ground they are members of the New Peoples’ Army.
The ruling, penned by Associate Justice Jose Catral Mendoza, reversed the CA’s June 2007 decision dismissing the writ of habeas corpus petition filed by the families of the three missing persons based on the testimony of witness Raymond Manalo, who said he was a victim of military abduction and torture, along with his brother Reynaldo.
Manalo’s testimony was considered newly discovered evidence submitted by the petitioners upon a motion for reconsideration on account of his testimony that he and his brother saw Cadapan and Empeno during their captivity in Southern Tagalog between Feb. 14, 2006 until their escape on Aug. 13, 2007.
The CA also ordered the petitions for the issuance of a writ of amparo filed by the families of Cadapan, Empeño and Merino before the Supreme Court consolidated with the petition for writ of habeas corpus.
Named respondents in the petitions for habeas corpus and amparo were Maj. Gen. (ret.) Jovito Palparan, former commander of the Army’s 7th Infantry Division based at Fort Magsaysay, Laur, Nueva Ecija; Maj. Gen. Romeo Tolentino, former commander of the Northern Luzon Command; Lt. Francis Mirabelle Samson, commander of the Barangay Mercado Detachment in Hagonoy, and a certain Arnel Enrique.
The CA said with the additional testimony of Manalo, the petitioners have been able to prove the fact of their detention by elements of the military.
"The testimony of Raymond Manalo can no longer be ignored and brushed aside. His narration and those of the earlier witnesses, taken together, constitute more than substantial evidence warranting an order that the three be released from detention if they are not being held for a lawful cause. They may be moving from place to place but still they are considered under detention and custody of the respondents," the CA said.
The appellate court also directed the PNP to finish its investigation into the disappearance of the three and file charges against those responsible.
The CA said the personnel of the Army’s 7th Division appeared to have "appointed themselves as protective guardians of the Republic whose precious principles, however, they have dishonored by ignoring the rights and liberties of its own citizens."
Based on Manalo’s affidavit, six armed men in military uniform abducted him and his brother on Feb. 14, 2006 from their place in Barangay Buhol na Mangga, San Ildefonso, Bulacan.
From there, they were detained and moved from one place to another, particularly military camps and detachments including Fort Magsaysay and a detachment in Sapang, San Miguel, Bulacan, where they allegedly met Palparan.
From Sapang, Manalo was transported to Camp Tecson under the 24th Infantry Battalion, where three men loaded him in a white car.
Manalo said he was taken to what he learned later a training detachment of the Scout Rangers. He said it was in the barracks that he met Cadapan, with her feet chained to a double bed.
During their conversation, Manalo said Cadapan told him she was abducted from Hagonoy and was subjected to torture."
After a week, Manalo was reunited with his brother who also brought to the camp, where they stayed from September 2006 until Nov. 22, 2006.
Three days after, Raymond said Empeño and Merino were also brought to the camp.
Raymond further said he saw Cadapan being subjected to torture like water treatment through nose, and electric shocks.
In its June 2007 decision, the CA merely admonished Palparan and his men at the 7th ID for withholding information and inconsistencies in their testimonies regarding the abduction and disappearance of the three.
The CA earlier dismissed the petition for habeas corpus on the ground it was not the proper remedy in the case.
The CA said the proper remedy was to initiate the filing of criminal complaints against those the families believe were responsible for the disappearance of the three.
The appeals court said it cannot yet order the prosecution of Palparan and his men due to insufficient evidence that he ordered the abduction of the victims.

Philippines: A Kidnap Case

This is typical of the AFP(Armed Forces of the Philippines) reaction to cases where they seem obviously involved in a kidnapping or extra-judicial killing. They brand the person a member of the NPA. Often there is also a move to claim if there is a killing that it is a purge by the NPA (New People's Army--Maoist insurgents that control parts of rural Philippines)It should be noted that as well as the illegal banned NPA there are legal branches of the Philippine Communist Party and various front activist organisations. Several parties have representatives in parliament and many alleged front groups are active in labor and agricultural movements. It is often members of these groups that are killed extra-judicially. Also, those responsible for these acts often do not distinguish communists from non-communists but all activists are tarred with the same brush.


This is from the daily Malaya.

‘Stop demonizing Jonas’



BY REINIR PADUA




A MILITANT group that worked with Jonas Burgos before he was abducted last April yesterday assailed the Army for "demonizing" the activist to justify his disappearance.

The Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas said Army chief Lt. Gen. Romeo Tolentino’s statement that Jonas is a member of the communist New People’s Army was "an added insult to the injury" inflicted by the military on him and his family.

Tolentino said Thursday that based on a background check conducted by the Army, Burgos "appeared" to be an NPA member since the ‘90s and is associated with the Front Committee 2 of the NPA operating in Bulacan.

The Army said it has "credible witnesses" and documents to prove Burgos is an NPA member.

Army spokesman Lt. Col. Ernesto Torres said the assessment was based on documents and witnesses that he refused to identify.

"We cannot say his position (in the NPA) at the moment but he is occupying a significant position…His rise to the organization was fast," Torres also said.

Justice Secretary Raul Gonzalez said whether Burgos is an NPA or not, his rights are guaranteed by the Constitution.

He declined to comment on Tolentino’s claim, saying he wants to study first evidence other groups have.

Prior to his disappearance, Burgos provided training on farming technology to members of the Alyansa ng Magbubukid ng Bulakan, a provincial chapter of KMP.

Dr. Edita Burgos said even if the military has credible witnesses to prove her son is a member of the communist movement, that does not justify his kidnapping.

"Does that mean that because he was an NPA they are already right in abducting him and up to this point, he is not being resurfaced?" she said.

Dr. Burgos dared the Army to make public its evidence.

"What must be answered is where is Jonas…We are really pointing at the Army, the military because of the evidence that we have. Whatever they say about Jonas’ background is still irrelevant because as a person, no matter what his background is, he should not be deprived of private liberty. That is guaranteed by the Constitution," she said.

Mrs. Burgos expressed fear the military is making the revelation because it is laying the ground for "another announcement."

"But whatever it is, I still stand pat that whatever a person’s background is, that’s irrelevant. What they did (abduction) is against the law. That is what I’m saying. Even a rapist, a robber, even if you committed a heinous crime, you are still entitled to defend yourself," she added.

Torres declined to answer questions on whether the Army’s witnesses were also NPA members. He merely said they were "credible."

On the documents purportedly showing Burgos is an NPA member, Torres said: "It has something do with the organization… We have some holdings that he is indeed a member of the New People’s Army."

Torres said the documents do not include the open letter that was circulated through the internet weeks ago. He said the circulated document, which claimed Burgos is an NPA member, is still subject of validation by the Army.

Asked if it was possible that Burgos’ kidnapping was part of the communist purge, he said: "We don’t know. There are a lot of leads that can be followed why he disappeared."

On Dr. Burgos’ statement that Tolentino’s pronouncement only bolstered suspicions the Army was behind the kidnapping, Torres said: "That is her perception. What we are saying right now are the facts that we have unearthed."

"It was expected also from their camp because they have been consistently pointing their accusing finger to the military…We tried to follow some other leads and at the moment, these are the new things we unearthed," said Torres.

Dr. Burgos has tagged the Army’s 56th Infantry Battalion as behind the abduction. The license plates of the van used in the abduction was originally attached to a vehicle impounded at the headquarters of the Army’s 56th Infantry Battalion in Norzagaray, Bulacan.

Witness in the abduction said they heard Burgos shouting "aktibista lang ako" while he was being dragged out of a restaurant at the Ever Gotesco mall in Quezon City last April 28.

KMP chairman and Anakpawis Rep. Rafael Mariano said Tolentino’s "grossly malicious statement" is part of the Armed Forces’ "continuing cover-up and justification of Jonas’ disappearance."

"Despite the people’s growing belief that the military was behind Jonas’ disappearance, General Tolentino still has the gall to criminalize and demonize him," Mariano said.