A Manila Regional Trial Court (RTC) dismissed charges against dozens of Leftists and civilians and ordered the release of the detained in the case involving the so-called “traveling skeletons” of Inopacan, Leyte.
In an order dated December 16, Manila RTC Branch 32 granted the demurrer separately filed by farmers Norberto Murillo, Dario Tomada and Oscar Belleza, the National Union of Peoples’ Lawyers (NUPL) announced.
Manila RTC Branch 32 presiding judge Thelma Bunyi-Medina ruled that the prosecution failed to prove the first element of murder, that is, the alleged 15 victims were actually killed and that the accused were actually involved in the alleged crime, the NUPL said.
“[The government]…failed to scientifically prove that the subject skeletal remains exhumed in Mt. Sapang Dako, Barangay Kaulisihan, Inopacan, Leyte on August 26-29, 2006 belong to the latter and [that]…the accounts of its eye-witnesses as regards how they were killed, who killed them and other surrounding circumstances behind their deaths are palpably unreliable,” it added.
The court reportedly noted the numerous infirmities in the testimonies of the prosecution’s witnesses who claimed to be former members of the New People’s Army (NPA) and rebel returnees.
[T]he Decision found “overwhelming contrarieties and infirmities in the testimonies of the prosecution’s witnesses,” the decision reportedly ruled.
The court also dismissed the cases of others “against whom the prosecution had already terminated the presentation of its evidence but who had not filed their Demurrer to Evidence,” including prominent Leftist leaders and peace negotiators.
‘Traveling skeletons’
In 2006, the government’s Inter-Agency Legal Action Group again filed multiple murder charges against 38 civilians as well as prominent Leftists, including National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP) chief political consultant Jose Maria Sison who was under maximum security detention of the Ferdinand Marcos dictatorship at the time of the alleged crime.
An earlier 2000 case was filed on the allegation that the 67 skeletal remains were of victims of a purge of NPA members carried out by the accused.
Human rights group Karapatan however pointed out in 2019 that the skeletons of three of the alleged victims in the 2000 case as well as other witnesses were “recycled” in the later Hilongos, Leyte trials.
Karapatan said the 2006 charges were simply a “remake of the story portrayed by the prosecution in Criminal Case No. 2001-6-51 before the Regional Trial Court (RTC), 8th Judicial Region, Baybay, Leyte which was dismissed by the said court.”
Sison in turn accused then Philippine Army commanding general, now national security adviser Hermogenes Esperon Jr., of collecting the bones from various cemeteries for his “legal offensive” against those opposing then President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.
Other defendants questioned the articles of clothing presented during the hearings which still displayed vivid markings and colors.
“Those who have been to the mountains would know that clothes buried in the rainforest for more than 20 years would not appear like that. It should have completely decomposed by now,” accused Benito Tiamzon, NDFP negotiating panel member, told Bulatlat during a 2016 hearing.
Public Interest Law Center and National Union of Peoples’ Lawyers defense counsels with some of the accused and their supporters. (Photo from Atty. Kristina Conti/PILC-NUPL)
‘Christmas gift for peace consultants’
The Public Interest Law Center, co-defense counsels, said the Court’s decision is an early Christmas gift for the defendants.
“[We]…counsel for [co-accused] Saturnino Ocampo, Adelberto Silva, Rafael Baylosis, and the late Randall Echanis, (are) heartened by the ruling, which is tantamount to an acquittal, in one of the most controversial cases initiated by the Inter-Agency Legal Action Group. The Court’s painstaking consideration is patent in a 97-page dissection of the prosecution’s evidence. In all, the Decision found “overwhelming contrarieties and infirmities in the testimonies of the prosecution’s witnesses,” the PILC said.
“We are delighted that the Court has well-taken our consistent position that these cases are trumped-up, arguably part of an elaborate ploy to vilify our clients. These cases impleaded many consultants in the peace talks who had gone public – and these charges were but part of persecution by the government,” the lawyers said.
Accused Ocampo, Silva, Baylosis and Echanis, as well as Vicente Ladlad and Wilma Austria are NDFP peace consultants who actively attended formal peace negotiations with the Manila government.
The Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas (KMP) hailed the decision, saying it is a hard-earned victory for Murillo, Belleza and Tomada, the last a leader of its Eastern Visayas chapter Sagupa at the time of their arrest in 2010.
“It (the decision) inspires hope for farmers nationwide facing the criminalization of asserting land rights. KMP likewise calls for the unconditional release of all political prisoners,” the group said. # (Raymund B. Villanueva)
Karapatan’s office was busy Wednesday afternoon and people were scurrying about, as usual. But no list was being updated and no frantic calls were being made. The stacks of papers atop tables were being ignored and the placards were shoved to corners were they could not get in the way of the bustle.
The chatter was happy and the jokes came thicker and faster than usual. And instead of harried-looking human rights defenders, they looked like party-goers in their Sunday best.
In a space usually reserved for quick consultations when there are reports of arrests and killings stood a ring light beside a human rights lawyer, make up brushes in hand. Under the lights sat Karapatan’s secretary general Cristina “Tinay” Palabay being glammed up.
Downstairs came a steady procession of cars loaded with well-wishers from church and other human rights groups. They were getting ready to convoy to far-off Bonifacio Global City, an unusual destination for their type who are usually seen in rallies on streets and military and police camps.
When it was time to go, Tinay emerged smiling, every inch an international human rights laureate she was to formally become in a couple of hour’s time.
Roneo “Jigs” Clamor, Tinay’s long-time deputy secretary general, also performed an unusual role that afternoon. He drove the honoree while wearing a seldom-worn suit. Another extraordinary instance happened when they arrived at the Blue Leaf Pavilion at the swanky corner of Taguig City. “This is actually my first time to have valet parking,” he said as he passed over the car keys to the attendant.
After a brief wait at the entrance for Covid-19 health protocols, Tinay entered the hall, Marcos martial law survivors, mothers of killed and the disappeared, fellow rights defenders, and friends from student activism days in tow. They were soon joined by members of the diplomatic corps, journalists, progressive activists and candidates for various positions in the 2022 elections.
Karapatan secretary general Cristina ‘Tinay’ Palabay with her 2021 Franco-German Prize for Human Rights and the Rule of Law plaque and medallion. (Photo by Atty. Ma Sol Taule/Karapatan)
In gratitude to Tinay and Karapatan
The program started on time. French Ambassador Michele Boccoz spoke first, announcing Tinay was among the 15 recipients of the 2021 Franco-German Prize for Human Rights and the Rule of Law. Being feted in similar ceremonies across the globe were Monika Borgman (Lebanon), Narges Mohammad (Iran), Nebahat Akkoc (Turkey), Erika Aifan (Guatemala), May Sabe Phyu (Myanmar), Noelah Godfrey Msuya (Tanzania), Tabelo times (South Africa), Sharhzad Akbar (Afghanistan), Chang Weiping (China), Jacques Letang (Haiti), Alexandrine Victoire Saizonuo (Benin), Ajna Jusic (Bosnia & Herzegovina), Jake Epelle (Nigeria), and Rafael Azcategui (Venezuela).
Boccoz said that in her capacity as Karapatan secretary general, Tinay led efforts in providing legal and material assistance to political prisoners, victims, and the families of victims of torture, harassment, displacement, enforced disappearances in the Philippines.
France Ambassador Michele Boccoz (left) and German Ambassador Anke Reiffenstuel (right) formally conferring award to Cristina Palabay. (Embassy of France to the Philippines and Micronesia photo)
“Cristina’s voice and that of Karapatan have remained strong and inspiring, even in the face of danger,” the Ambassador said.
Tinay was jointly nominated by the French and German Embassies in Manila “in recognition of her dedication to promoting human rights in the Philippines and globally, particularly though her advocacy work in protecting minorities, empowering women, upholding labor rights, defending freedom of the press and expression, calling for respect of international humanitarian law, as well as supporting actions for the protection and safety of human rights workers all over the world.”
“France and Germany are deeply concerned by the repression or threats to which human rights defenders are subjected to. The protection and promotion of human rights and the rule of law throughout the world remain top priorities in our two countries’ foreign policies as we strive to achieve a world that is built on peace, equality and justice. These values are at the heart of the Franco-German Human Rights Prize, which was created precisely to pay tribute to those who have devoted, and who continue to devote, their body and soul to the defense of human rights everywhere. Indeed, human rights defenders such as Cristina must be protected and supported,” Ambassador Boccoz said.
In her own speech, German Ambassador Anke Reiffenstuel said Tinay was being honored for her “courageous work to protect human rights.” She also paid tribute to Karapatan as an important partner in their work in the field of human rights, assisting victims of human rights violations and their families, documenting human rights violations, coordinating the work of human rights organizations, and engaging dialogue with government institutions.
“Dear Cristina Palabay, thank you for your unwavering commitment and dedicated work,” the envoy said.
Apostasy at the picket line
In her acceptance speech, Tinay recalled her actual “eureka moment” while still a University of the Philippines student when she decided to devote her life to social justice and peace.
“Together with some fellow students, we were then going every weekend to a picket line of striking workers, talking with them on why they are on strike, why they had such pittance for wages despite more than eight hours of work and overtime. I marveled at their clockwork discipline and unity as they took turns in cooking, discussing with wide-eyed teenagers like us, cleaning and guarding the picket line, negotiating with the private guards, the police, and their employers. And then, weeks after, I was shocked to learn that their leader was shot dead near the picket line,” Tinay narrated
Tinay said she felt the murder of a trade union leader was unacceptable. “At that moment, I told myself: no way, I cannot just go on like it’s business as usual, get married, and live a life of apathy, after seeing that those who are the lifeblood of our nation — the workers — get treated like that. Little did I know that many years after, I’d have to witness such daily fare of violence as a women’s rights activist and as a human rights worker of Karapatan, staring at and being in the eye of fascism and authoritarianism. But perhaps, more than being a witness to such pains and violence, I am inspired by the strength of those who had it worst,” she narrated.
Some of Palabay’s fellow human rights defenders she dedicated her award to. (Photo by Atty. Ma. Sol Taule/Karapatan)
She went on to pay tribute to mothers of the forcibly disappeared, women political detainees painfully separated from their babies because of trumped-up charges, families of victims of extrajudicial killings, human rights lawyers who continue providing legal aid to victims despite losing their colleagues and friends to assassinations, mothers of victims of President Rodrigo Duterte’s bloody drug war, and survivors of the dictator Ferdinand Marcos’ martial law. Tinay paused to ask the latter to raise their hands and for the rest of her audience to applaud them. Among them were Karapatan chairperson Elisa Tita Lubi, former social work and development secretary Judy Taguiwalo, former anti-poverty commission chairperson Liza Masa, and Makabayan chairperson and Senate aspirant Neri Colmenares.
“Every day, I am witness to the tenacity, commitment and collective strength of my fellow human rights workers from Karapatan in documenting and monitoring human rights violations and advocacy work. This tenacity and commitment were tested through the numerous attacks, threats and vilification against us, including an ongoing reprisal suit against me and my fellow officers who are here with me now,” Tinay said.
‘We are seeds’
Tinay is the third Filipina to receive the prestigious prize, after Rosemarie Trajano in 2017and Mary Aileen Bacalso in 2019. Trajano, then secretary general of the Philippine Alliance of Human Rights Advocates, was recognized for dedicating over 30 years in the defense and protection of human rights in the country, while Bacalso, secretary general of the Asian Federation against Involuntary Disappearances, for lobbying for greater national and international action against enforced disappearances and providing assistance to victims and their families.
In closing her speech, Tinay recalled the words more recently echoed by her sisters in the feminist movement: “They tried to bury us. They didn’t know we are seeds.”
“These words ring true for every persecuted activist like myself, for every peasant claiming the land on which one’s ancestors have worked on and enriched for decades, for every indigenous people who defend and protect the environment and ancestral lands, for every worker whose toil and sweat have built industries, for health workers in the frontlines of the pandemic and campaigning for healthcare for the poor, for every freedom fighter who struggle for justice and democracy. They tried to bury us — artists and journalists of our land who uphold facts, truth, and history. They tried to bury us — Filipinas who are slaying the monsters of patriarchy. They tried to bury us — human rights workers who work and struggle with communities that have been deprived of rights, freedoms, and liberties.
“They didn’t know we are seeds. The kind of seeds that grow in the most brutal environment of political storms; the kind of seeds that cry for justice, for accountability, for freedom; the kind of seeds that push through the hardest of rocks to be able to breathe the air of survival and of defiance; the kind of seeds that blossom into something that is beyond the self, into something that is cognizant of our nation’s history of struggles,” she said.
The 2021 Franco-German Prize for Human Rights and the Rule of Law plaque and medallion. (Embassy of France to the Philippines and Micronesia photo)
Back to work
Karapatan’s office reverted to its default mode the very next day, Thursday. The beautiful dresses and smart suits are gone, replaced by the usual political shirts. The computers were on and humming and the papers were again being sifted. Newly-freed political detainee Cora Agovida has to be assisted in her plan to sue her accusers, more than 700 political prisoners are still in prison for their beliefs and activism, and Johanna Abua must be accompanied in her search for her disappeared husband Steve.
Tinay was in a room somewhere in the crowded office, answering queries from a journalist. Her colleagues at the country’s busiest human rights office were again hunched over their respective tables, tallying rights violation cases and perhaps hoping there would be no new cases as the year closes. It is to them, her colleagues, that she dedicated the honor the night previous.
“I, we, stand with all of you today — unburied by those who wanted to take life and our rights away from all of us. This recognition, the Franco-German Human Rights Prize and the Rule of Law, is not only for me: it is for each and every person who believes in defending and advancing people’s rights,” she said. # (Raymund B. Villanueva)
https://kodao.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/t1.png17143048Kodao Productionshttps://kodao.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/kodao.pngKodao Productions2021-12-16 19:28:252021-12-16 20:08:26Tinay Palabay wins prestigious human rights award; dedicates prize to fellow rights defenders
Hotel suffers water supply interruption since Tuesday evening
A retuning overseas Filipino worker (OFW) complained of being placed in an “inadequate” quarantine facility by the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) after returning from Singapore starting last Saturday night.
In a message to Kodao, “PB”, an engineer, said Red Doorz Hotel along Epifanio delos Santos Avenue (EDSA)in Pasay City only had “closet-sized” rooms for him and his fellow OFWs that are “unsuitable” as quarantine facilities that lasts for days.
PB and fellow returning OFWs are required to complete a five-day quarantine until Thursday having been tested negative of the Covid-19 virus.
“Our room door size has the same width as a standard toilet door. The entrance could not be described as a walk way as its width is less than a meter width leading to the bed. The room is only two meters wide that do not allow us to open our standard large travel luggage. Our travel luggage is dirty and we have to place it on the bed!” he said.
Returning OFW slams size of room at OWWA quarantine facility he says even backpacking tourists would not stay in for more than 12 hours. (Photo by PB)
The OFW said their rooms are only good for backpacking transient tourists who only need room to wash and sleep for a night.
PB added their rooms have a single-sized bed, have their own bathrooms, are air-conditioned, with an electrical outlet, wi-fi access and a wall television set. They were also provided with a single-use soap and a sachet of shampoo.
“No backpacker tourist stays in this type of room for more than 12 hours without stepping out. And yet we will be here at least five days,” he complained.
“Clearly this room is not designed for a five-day lockdown quarantine of a travel-weary OFW,” PB added.
Returning OFW said his room is so cramped he could not even open his luggage. (Photo by PB)
‘Stressful arrival and check in’
PB said their group of 25 OFWs from Singapore arrived at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport at about 6:30 Saturday night and were processed through by the bureau of Quarantine at about 7 PM.
Their group were through the Bureau of Customs only at about 9 PM, however, he said.
By then hungry, they were given “bland adobo” with a piece of chicken leg and water for dinner.
They were herded into a bus that arrived at RedDoorz EDSA-Pasay at 9:30 in the evening but were made to wait at the hotel garage for hours.
PB claimed that the staff he asked told him that OWWA did not give the hotel was not given advance notice on their arrival.
The group also suffered water supply interruption since Tuesday evening.
“Apparently, OWWA has this practice of very late notice to hotels like them. They couldn’t prepare in advance of course. And so we waited at the extension lobby of the hotel, which means its garage,” PB said.
PB was taken to his room at 11:40 PM, he revealed.
Returning OFW said his travel-weary group was made to wait at the hotel’s garage for hours while their check-in is being processed by OWWA until midnight. (Photo by PB)
“Theres no forward planning by the OWWA…There is no OWWA pre-arrival check of the rooms. Don’t they have any standard room requirement for quarantine? My housemates (as we call our collective group) were so stressed out from travel and the long wait in the garage (lobby extension),” he added.
PB said he quizzed the OWWA staff assigned to their group who reportedly said he himself was not aware RedDoorz EDSA-Pasay is still a quarantine facility.
“There’s a clear mismanagement of the influx of OFW arrivals this holiday season. OWWA knew of the total number of expected OFW per dayand yet there is lack of planning and coordination among themselves,” PB said.
OWWA did not reply to Kodao’s request for comment. # (Raymund B. Villanueva)
The Supreme Court declared as unconstitutional two provisions of Republic Act No. 1174, the Anti-Terrorism Act (ATA) of 2020, in an En Banc session last Tuesday.
The Court declared as struck down controversial portions of Sections 4 and 25 of the law that were among those contested by 37 petitions last year, its public information office announced today.
“The qualifier to the provisio in Section 4 of RA 11479 (on) ‘…which are not intended to cause death of serious physical harm to a person, to endanger a person’s life, or to create a serious risk to public safety’ by a vote of 12-3 is declared as unconstitutional for being overbroad and violative of freedom of expression,” the Court said.
Petitioner Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (BAYAN) said this decision has clarified that protests and advocacy are not considered as acts of terrorism.
“Our main win from the SC ruling on the terror law is that ACTIVISM IS NOT TERRORISM,” BAYAN secretary general Renato Reyes Jr. said.
In its December 7 decision, the Court also declared as unconstitutional by a vote of 9-6 the second method for designation in Section 25 paragraph 2 of RA 11479, “Request for designations by other jurisdictions or supranational jurisdictions may be adopted by the ATC (Anti-Terrorism Council) after determination that the proposed designee meets the criteria for designation of UNSCR (United Nations Security Council) No. 1373.”
The court added that all other challenged provisions are not unconstitutional on the basis of the petitions against it.
‘Still dangerous’
Reyes however warned that the other contested provisions declared as not unconstitutional by the decision may still be abused by the ATC created by the law.
“Other dangerous provisions on designation, proscription, warrant-less arrests and prolonged detention remain and must be challenged. We will prepare our motion for reconsideration as we study the SC ruling when it is released,” Reyes said.
Karapatan Alliance for the Advancement of People’s Rights secretary general Cristina Palabay, also a petitioner, said her group is dismayed by the Court’s decision to retain other “draconian provisions.”
“The Supreme Court’s decision to adopt repressive provisions – the vague and overbroad definition of ‘terrorism,’ arbitrary powers of the Anti-Terrorism Council to designate and freeze assets of individuals and organizations, and the long period of warrantless detention — will only set to worsen the already dismal human rights situation in the country,” Palabay said.
Palabay also pointed out the other offenses outlined in Sections 5 (Threats to commit terrorism), 6 (Planning, training, preparing, and facilitating the commission of terrorism), 7 (Conspiracy to commit terrorism), 8 (Proposal to commit terrorism), and 9 (Inciting to commit terrorism) remain “largely vague and susceptible to subjective interpretations and therefore abuse.”
The Karapatan official added that the retention of the ATC’s “arbitrary” power to designate along with the other vague offenses in the Anti-Terrorism Act “can still be used to target dissenters.”
“The ATC’s power to designate individuals and organizations as ‘terrorists’ is not only arbitrary, as pointed out by Associate Justice Benjamin Caguioa during the oral arguments, the process of designation ‘already achieves the purpose of proscription.’ It has also proven to be deadly,” she said.
Palabay cited the 2018 Department of Justice petition to proscribe over 600 individuals as terrorists under the Human Security Act, seven of whom have eventually been murdered, including human rights worker Zara Alvarez and peace consultants Randy Malayo and Randall Echanis.
“The ATC’s power to designate is a virtual hit list. Being designated as a ‘terrorist’ is essentially a death warrant. This arbitrary power along with the retention of the 14-day period of warrantless detention in Section 29 are dangerous provisions that would only engender the commission of human rights violations including torture and enforced disappearances under the cover of implementing the terror law,” Palabay said.
Palabay said Karapatan continues to demand that the entire law must be junked and declared unconstitutional.
‘Fight isn’t over’
Bayan Muna chairperson and counsel-petitioner against the ATA Neri Colmenares said their group plans to challenge the Supreme Court’s declaration that almost all the other provisions of the law are not unconstitutional.
“We believe that it should still strike down other provisions that allow authorities to detain people for up to 24 days without charges, allows the ATC to designate terrorists at will and freeze their assets, allows authorities to detain persons already out on bail incommunicado in the guise of house arrest, and other draconian provisions,” Colmenares said.
The Senate aspirant said he and some fellow petitioners will most likely file a Motion for Reconsideration “to challenge the other provisions that have a devastating effect on human rights and civil liberties” once they get a copy of the full decision.
The Office of the Solicitor General, ATA defender during the oral arguments before the Court, has yet to comment on the SC decision. # (Raymund B. Villanueva)
https://kodao.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/13-a.jpg720960Kodao Productionshttps://kodao.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/kodao.pngKodao Productions2021-12-09 13:33:072021-12-09 14:05:09High Court strikes down 2 Anti-Terror Act provisions as unconstitutional
Kodao Productions was among the winners in this year’s Human Rights Pinduteros’s Choice Awards given by HRonlinePH.
Kodao’s post of Altermidya Network’s statement “On the incredulous red-tagging of Altermidya Network at the Dec. 1 Senate hearing” won in the awards’ Human Rights Network’s Posts category, receiving the most number of clicks in a poll held last November 10 to 25 on HRonlinePH’s website and Facebook page.
It condemned National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict’s red-tagging of Altermidya, an alliance of community journalist, independent media outfits, community radio broadcasters and grassroots film collectives.
Kodao’s deputy director for radio Raymund Villanueva said the media outfit dedicates the award to National Artist for Literature Bienvenido Lumbera and Commission on Human Rights Chairperson (CHR) Jose Luis Martin C. Gascon who both died of illness this year.
“Ka Bien had been our Board of Directors chairperson for the longest time and Chito had been our friend and supporter since he became CHR chairperson. Both were staunch human rights defenders,” Villanueva said.
For human rights heroes
HRonlinePH said its 11th Pinduteros’ Choice Awards is a recognition and appreciation of its human rights heroes who persevere in defending human rights.
“Through our annual gathering we recognize the significant contribution of individuals and groups for raising awareness, inspiring and acting for human rights,” HRonlinePH co-founder Jerbert Briola said.
HRonlinePH’s annual Pinduteros’ Choice Award is its traditional culmination of a two-day human rights conference that focuses on freedom of expression.
Other 11th Pinduteros’ Choice Awards winners were:
HR Pinduteros Choice for HR BLOGSITE: Minding Mindoro and beyond by Norman Novio
HR Pinduteros Choice for HR EVENT: A Story from the HeART by UP Educators’ Circle (UP EdCirc
HR Pinduteros Choice for HR VIDEOS: #SanaAllDapatAll Pantay at Patas | #WokeDTalk2021 Episode 1 by TFDP and Y4R
HR Pinduteros Choice for FEATURED OFF THE SHELF/RESOURCES: Tuligsa at iba pang mga Tula ni Rene Boy E. Abiva
HR Pinduteros Choice for FEATURED SITE: QUARANTALK MEDIA
HR Pinduteros Choice for HR CAMPAIGN: #BabaeMakapangyarihan by World March Of Women-Pilipinas
HR Pinduteros Choice for RIGHT-UP: Isang Bukas na Liham Para kay Bb. Angel Locsin by Jose Mario De Vega
HR Pinduteros Choice for WEBSITE: KARAPATAN Network for the Advancement of Peoples’ Rights
Karapatan won for the second year in a row.
The 11th Pinduteros’ Choice Awards also honored Forum Asia and the British Embassy in Manila with special plaques of appreciation for their support to HRonlinePH.
Briola said the awards is their contribution to the commemoration of International Human Rights Day that recognizes the dissemination, promotion and publication of materials, events, articles and articles on human rights.
“This year’s awardees did not waver in their commitment to human rights despite various obstacles and hardships. These defenders did not give up. This award is a recognition and celebration of their relentless advocacy for human rights in the midst of pandemic and tyranny,” Briola said. #
https://kodao.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/260366379_338378548123675_7153215399405942351_n.jpg513768Kodao Productionshttps://kodao.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/kodao.pngKodao Productions2021-12-02 20:02:522021-12-09 21:57:24Kodao wins human rights award
Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (BAYAN) warned Senator Lawrence Christopher Go’s withdrawal from the presidential race may just be an attempt to avert the split of the Duterte-Marcos alliance in the 2022 national elections.
In a statement, BAYAN secretary general Renato Reyes Jr. said Go’s withdrawal only benefits the alliance between the Marcos and Duterte dynasties.
In a press conference Tuesday, November 30, Go declared he is withdrawing from the presidential race.
Go said he wants to spare President Rodrigo Duterte from further problems caused by his daughter’s decision to partner with Marcos.
“Ayaw rin talaga ng pamilya ko kaya naisip ko na siguro ay hindi ko pa panahon sa ngayon…Ayaw ko rin lalong maipit si President Duterte. Higit pa po sa tatay pagmamahal ko sa kanya,” Go said. (My family is really against my candidacy. I also do not want to put President Duterte in a difficult situation. My love for him is greater than that of a father.)
Go earlier filed his candidacy for the vice-presidency, eventually substituting as presidential candidate for fellow Senator Ronald dela Rosa who withdrew last November 15.
Both Go and dela Rosa are believed to be acting at the behest of the President in filing their certificates of candidacy (COC) last October while their faction of the Partido Demokratiko Pilipino-Laban ng Pilipino is convincing presidential daughter and Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio to run as president.
Duterte-Carpio however decided to run as Marcos Jr.’s vice-presidential running mate instead.
President Duterte went on to accuse Marcos Jr. of being a weak leader who has no public service achievements to speak of.
Many also believe the president was referring to the late dictator’s son when he repeatedly alleged that a presidential candidate is cocaine-dependent.
Reyes said Go’s withdrawal may lead to the elder Duterte supporting Marcos Jr. after all, despite his tirades against the presidential aspirant.
“Perhaps there is already a form of accommodation for Rodrigo Duterte under a Marcos-Sara Duterte tandem,” Reyes said.
“Whatever the final outcome of their maneuvers, the people are more than ever resolved to stop a Marcos restoration and a Duterte extension,” Reyes added.
Progressive groups like BAYAN accuse both dynasties of gross and widespread human rights violations. # (Raymund B. Villanueva)
https://kodao.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/marcos.jpg8901600Kodao Productionshttps://kodao.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/kodao.pngKodao Productions2021-11-30 14:17:192021-11-30 14:17:20Go’s withdrawal to benefit Marcos-Duterte dynasties, BAYAN warns
Martial law survivors called on the Commission on Elections (COMELEC) to disqualify Ferdinand Marcos Jr. as the poll body hears petitions to cancel the former senator’s certificate of candidacy for the presidency in next year’s national elections.
The Campaign Against the Return of the Marcoses and Martial Law (CARMMA) said Marcos Jr. should never be allowed to hold or run for public office because he is a convicted tax evader.
“A thief, a liar, a convicted tax evader, and the unrepentant son of an ousted dictator should never be allowed to hold or run for public office — much more the highest and most powerful position in the land,” CARMMA said in a statement.
CARMMA is a group of Ferdinand Marcos Sr.’s martial law rule in the 1970s to 1980s.
The group said that to allow the presidential aspirant to again run for office is not only a blatant mockery but a shameless bastardization of the country’s democracy and electoral exercise.
CARMMA and other human rights groups earlier filed petitions against Marcos Jr. citing his 1995 tax evasion charges conviction by the Quezon City Regional Trial Court (QC-RTC) and subsequent upholding of the decision by the Court of Appeals (CA) in 1997.
The government said the former senator had tax deficiencies amounting to P8,504 while he was Ilocos Norte vice governor and governor from 1982 to 1985.
During trial, Marcos Jr. blamed his staff for the crime, saying he always thought that his employees took care of filing his income tax returns.
The QC-RTC imposed a four year cumulative imprisonment sentence and a cumulative fine of P42,000 against Marcos Jr.
In upholding the QC-RTC decision, however, the CA removed the prison sentence and reduced the fine to P36,000, saying Marcos was not given due notice when the tax assessments were made.
The CA also acquitted Marcos Jr of the charge of not paying his income taxes.
CARMMA however said the late dictator’s son is still convicted of failing to file his income tax returns and should be perpetually disqualified from holding any government post in accordance with the Omnibus Election Code.
The Code’s Section 12 states that a person shall be disqualified from running for public office if he had been sentenced by final judgment “for subversion, insurrection, rebellion or for any offense for which he has been sentenced to a penalty of more than eighteen months or for a crime involving moral turpitude.”
The petitioners said that Marcos Jr.’s failure to pay his income taxes for four consecutive years while in power as a high government official constitutes moral turpitude.
“Having tasted unlimited powers, the Marcoses are now paving their return to Malacañang with Marcos Jr.’s bid for the presidency and their historical distortions and whitewashing of their atrocities funded by the millions they have stolen from the people,” CARMMA said.
The group said it is Comelec’s duty to settle the petitions to safeguard and defend democracy that were restored when the Marcoses were ousted in 1986.
“We must never again allow despots, tyrants, criminals, and liars to lord it over our land,” CARMMA said. # (Raymund B. Villanueva)
https://kodao.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/2016-04-15-carmma-no2bongbong_noel-042.jpg7201080Kodao Productionshttps://kodao.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/kodao.pngKodao Productions2021-11-26 13:52:532021-11-26 13:52:56Martial law survivors urge COMELEC to cancel ‘tax evader’ Marcos Jr’s candidacy
A Manila Regional Trial Court (RTC) judge acquitted two political prisoners on Wednesday, November 24, dismissing charges against them based on a search warrant issued by a controversial Quezon City judge.
In a 13-page decision, Branch 19 judge Marlo Mardazo-Malagar said that the prosecution failed to prove beyond reasonable doubt Michael Bartolome and Cora Agovida’s ownership or possession of illegal firearms, ammunitions and explosives the police alleged were seized from the couple.
The polices’ Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) raided Agovida and Bartolome house in Sta. Ana, Manila on October 31, 2019, later alleging they found hand guns and a hand grenade during the raid.
In a text message, Atty. Katherine Panguban of the National Union of Peoples’ Lawyers told Kodao that the couple’s arrest sprung from the implementation of a series of “questionable” search warrants issued by Quezon City Executive Judge Cecilyn Burgos-Villavert in 2019 against Metro Manila based activists and rights defenders.
Burgos-Villavert also issued warrants against Bagong Alyansang Makabayan-Metro Manila’s Ram Bautista, Manila Workers’ Unity’s Alma Moran and Kalipunan ng Damayang Mahihirap (Kadamay)-Manila’s Reina Mae Nasino based on police information that the activists were part of a gun-running syndicate.
Other Burgos-Villavert warrants have been either quashed or junked by fellow judges, including the one used against journalist Lady Ann Salem and trade union organizer Rodrigo Esparago in December 2020.
Salem and Esparago were released last March after the Mandaluyong City RTC dismissed charges of illegal possession of firearms and explosives against the two..
Womens group Gabriela said it welcomes the court decision, adding the development is a slap on the Rodrigo Duterte administration that has incessantly attacked activists and human rights defenders.
Agovida is Gabriela-Manila’s chairperson and regional spokesperson of Gabriela-Metro Manila while Bartolome is a Kadamay-Metro Manila organizer. #
https://kodao.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/free.jpg6851080Kodao Productionshttps://kodao.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/kodao.pngKodao Productions2021-11-25 10:29:352021-11-25 10:30:15Court acquits activist couple in Manila
The National Democratic Front in Bikol (NDF-Bikol) said the recent closure of a radio station in Legazpi City is another suppression of press freedom in a region that has seen one of the biggest numbers of media killings and attacks in recent years.
In a statement, NDF-Bikol spokesperson Ma. Roja Banua said Radyo Zagitsit DWH1 100.3 News FM’s forced closure is a “brazen attempt to limit the avenues for the Bikolano masses’ voices.”
Banua said the closure is connected with the coming 2022 elections.
The NDF spokesperson in the region said the radio station had existed in six years as “a platform for the masses and ordinary Bikolanos’ demands,” bewailing that the incident also deprived its workers their means of living amidst a pandemic.
‘Politically motivated’
NDF-Bikol’s statement agrees with Zagitsit FM’s claims the closure order issued by the regional office of the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) was “politically motivated.”
Radio station manager Hermogenes “Jun” Alegre said they were ordered to cease operations last November 8, several days before the expiration of their extended permit today, November 19.
Alegre blamed Rodrigo Duterte ally and Ako Bikol Rep. Alfredo Garbin for the forced closure, alleging Garbin has influenced the House Committee on Legislative Franchises, of which the lawmaker is a member.
Alegre said that the Committee has pressured the NTC to issue the closure order against his radio station.
In news reports, Alegre revealed that Garbin’s own station Radyo Oragon violates broadcasting laws by using repeaters to cover the entire Bikol Region.
Garbin has denied involvement, saying the closure order is purely an application of law.
Alegre and Garbin are both candidates for different local government positions and are allied with opposing political forces in Albay province.
Press freedom issue
NDF-Bikol said the closure is part of the worsening state suppression of press freedom, citing other cases of attacks on press freedom in the region.
“This is no different from the innumerable cases of threats and harassment that other media practitioners in the region constantly experience,” Banua said.
NDF-Bikol cited Camarines Norte Gov. Edgar Tallado’s filing libel and cyber-libel charges against journalists Virgilio Avila Jr., Nolito Banaria, Irene Cambronero, Mia Concordia, Rommel Ibasco Fenix, Bernie Patiag and Deo Trinidad in 2020.
It added that charges were also filed against broadcasters Ramil Soliveres and Jing Rima in Catanduanes while Albay-based alternative news site Baretang Bikolnon repeatedly suffered intimidation from the military and police.
“Worse, it has become commonplace for politicians and the AFP-PNP-CAFGU (Armed Forces of the Philippines-Philippine National Police-Civilian Auxiliary Force Geographical Unit) in Bikol to openly kill media practitioners who stand for truth and fearlessly expose crimes and anomalies that influential personalities, businessmen and government agencies are involved with,” Banua said.
The National Union of Journalists of the Philippines reports four Bikol journalists have been killed since July 2016, including the first two cases of media killings in the country under the Rodrigo Duterte government : Larry Que and Joey llana.
Two of the more recent incidents are the killings of Jobert ‘Pulpog’ Bercasio last September 15, 2020 in Sorsogon and Pastor Ronnie Villamor of DYME last November 14, 2020 in Brgy. Matanglad, Milagros, Masbate.
NDF-Bikol said Bercasio was killed by two motorcycle-riding assassins who were seen by witnesses to have retreated to a nearby military detachment after the shooting.
Villamor, meanwhile, along with land surveyors he was with during the incident, were alleged to be members of the New People’s Army by the military after killing them.
“In both cases, investigations have not prospered and military elements are yet to be punished even though the lies used to cover up the crimes were already publicly exposed,” NDF-Bikol said.
The group called on Bikolanos to support the embattled Zagitsit FM and the “journalists’ battle against state attacks.” # (Raymund B. Villanueva)
https://kodao.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/zagitsit.png360820Kodao Productionshttps://kodao.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/kodao.pngKodao Productions2021-11-19 15:31:562021-11-19 15:37:33NDF-Bikol: Radio station closure an attack on press freedom
Antonio Molina, the terminally ill political prisoner who asked for “compassionate release” from a local court, has died Thursday night, November 18 in a Puerto Princesa City hospital. He was 67.
Political prisoners support group Kapatid announced Molina was brought to the Ospital ng Palawan yesterday after suffering from cardiac arrest. He died a few minutes after 10 pm, the group said.
Kapatid added Molina was the sixth political prisoner to die during the pandemic. There is no report if he was tested for COVID-19 despite the extreme congestion of the city jail, it said.
Human rights group Karapatan said Molina is the 11th political detainee to die under the Rodrigo Duterte administration.
Faith-based group Promotion of Church Peoples’ Response (PCPR) also announced Molina’s death in a separate statement.
“With deep sadness, we bid farewell to Antonio Molina who died this evening November 18, 2021 after suffering months of excruciating pain from terminal cancer while in prison,” the PCPR said.
Molina was arrested on Oct. 4, 2019 in Palawan together with six staffers of the human rights group Karapatan. They were charged with illegal possession of firearms and explosives the Philippine National Police usually files against activists and alleged communists.
Molina was diagnosed with malignant stomach cancer (abdominal sarcoma) last March 24.
This led his family, lawyers and human rights groups to petition the government to grant him a “compassionate release” to allow him continued hospitalization and medical care.
But the motions filed by human rights lawyers were first denied by the Regional Trial Court Branch 51 of Puerto Princesa in Palawan last October 15.
“We had been asking the government for his compassionate release since the day that doctors gave him six months to live because of poor prognosis due to extreme disease,” Kapatid spokesperson Fides Lim said.
“We also appealed to the court and prison officials to transfer Molina to a hospital where he could receive intensive care. This was blocked by the prison warden who even denied that he was bedridden. It was too late when the Jail Inspector reversed their position on November 15 and asked the court to act on Molina’s motion for release on recognizance on humanitarian grounds,” Lim added.
Atty Ma. Sol Taule, one of Molina’s lawyers said she received a call Thursday night from his doctors asking permission to intubate the political detainee.
“I informed them of his family’s wish for his life to be extended to allow them to travel to Puerto Princesa to say their final goodbyes,” the lawyer said in Filipino.
“Our sadness and regret are profound for the delayed Release on Recognizance motion we filed before the court that would have allowed his family to take care of him in his final days,” Taule said, adding Molina was yet another victim of the government’s trumped up charges against activists.
Kapatid for its part asked the Commission on Human Rights to conduct an independent investigation into the responsibility and liability of prison officials as well as the accountability of a “callous” court in Molina’s death.
“[W]e ask the (CHR) to lead an independent investigation into his death, particularly the negligence of prison officials, even as we ask the court to reexamine itself and be held accountable for its callous decision-making that effectively served as his death warrant,” Lim said.
Last October, Kapatid asked why “a bedridden old man, completely disabled and incapable of any self-care, cannot benefit from the equity of the law that was used in principle to grant bail for jailed and convicted politicians accused of nonbailable high crimes.”
“The justice system failed Antonio Molina because of double standard and selective application. The penal system further punished him without mercy, deaf to his cries for help. We express our sincerest condolences to his bereaved family,” Lim said.
Taule said Molina was a gentle elderly person who always smiled and looked after his fellow prisoners even as he suffered excruciating pain because of illness.
“His indigenous people colleagues and fellow political detainees Awing and Bener were proud that they learned to read and write because of Molina’s tutelage.
The PCPR also said Molina endured great injustice at the hands of his accusers.
“[B]ut he is victorious. He has finished the race. He has fought the good fight,” the group said. # (Raymund B. Villanueva)
https://kodao.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/tatay.jpg8511080Kodao Productionshttps://kodao.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/kodao.pngKodao Productions2021-11-19 12:14:332021-11-19 14:37:11Terminally ill political detainee dies waiting for ‘compassionate release’
