By KARAPATAN (Alliance for the Advancement of People’s Rights)

“The Armed Forces of the Philippines has no right to brag about the capture of ‘terrorist personalities and communist leaders’ through their so-called informants. It’s a shame that it spent P19.25 million of the nation’s money for capturing and torturing people like security guard Rolly Panesa and presenting him as “Benjamin Mendoza”, a high-ranking official of the Communist Party of the Philippines, for the prize of P5.6 million. It’s simply a rip-off, an organized racket,” commented Karapatan’s secretary general Cristina Palabay. Panesa has been in jail for 10 months now.

Palabay added, “the AFP committed the same violation to Oligario Sebas, a resident of Manjuyod, Negros Oriental, who was also jailed because of the AFP’s claim that he is “Felimon Mendrez”, allegedly a CPP leader in Negros.”

The AFP said Sebas had a P5.2 million on his head and was on the list of the Department of National Defense-Department of Interior and Local Government Joint Orders on Reward or Joint Order 14.2012. Sebas was released through a writ of habeas corpus.

Karapatan, in earlier statements, lambasted the Joint Order 14.2012 saying “it is no different from the secret hit list of Gloria Arroyo’s Oplan Bantay Laya which resulted to thousands of cases of human rights violations ranging from illegal arrest and detention, enforced disappearances and political killings.”

The said DND-DILG Joint Order was used to legitimize the enforced disappearance, illegal arrest, and detention of Estelita T. Tacalan, a 60-year old peasant organizer and rural health worker in Misamis Oriental. Tacalan was reported missing on 27 April and was surfaced on 7 May at the Dipolog City Jail where she is currently detained.

“The DND-DILG’s secret hitlist should be scrapped as it has become the basis to arrest, detain, and torture people on false charges; or worse, disappeared or killed. The AFP should also be held accountable for squandering the people’s money to violate people rights. These acts confirm the AFP’s own admission that the Aquino government’s Oplan Bayanihan is a failure” said Palabay.

REFERENCE:
Cristina “Tinay” Palabay
Secretary General, KARAPATAN
+63917-3162831

Angge Santos
Media Liaison, KARAPATAN
+63918-9790580

PUBLIC INFORMATION DESK
publicinfo@karapatan.org
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Alliance for the Advancement of People’s Rights
2nd Flr. Erythrina Bldg., #1 Maaralin corner Matatag Sts., Central District
Diliman, Quezon City, PHILIPPINES 1101
Telefax: (+63 2) 4354146
Web: http://www.karapatan.org

KARAPATAN is an alliance of human rights organizations and programs, human rights desks and committees of people’s organizations, and individual advocates committed to the defense and promotion of people’s rights and civil liberties. It monitors and documents cases of human rights violations, assists and defends victims and conducts education, training and campaign.

The Dutch foundation Lawyers for Lawyers warns in an open letter to President Aquino of the Philippines about the continued labeling of lawyers as enemies of the state by the military. This month, Army chief Lt. Gen. Noel Coballes reportedly branded the National Union of Peoples’ Lawyers (NUPL)  as an ‘enemy’ in reaction to  NUPL’s criticism on the promotion of an army general who is facing credible charges of human rights violations. Gen. Coballes was quoted as saying: “You don’t expect any positive statement from the enemy”.

The practice of labeling — combined with the culture of impunity and the military involvement in politics — has in the past been  identified by national and international fact finding commissions as one of the main root causes for the spate of extrajudicial killings in the Philippines since 2001.

At least 23 lawyers were killed from 2001 to 2009. Many of them were labeled  as  ‘enemies of the state’ prior to being attacked,  apparently because they were identified with their clients or their clients’ causes as a result of performing their professional duties. So far, only one person has been convicted for these killings and this occurred in 2006.

Lawyers for Lawyers also notes that Filipino lawyers increasingly fear being silenced by fabricated charges. There is an imminent threat that Edre Olalia, a prominent human rights lawyer and a founding member of NUPL, faces clearly false charges as a result of exercising his legal profession.

Atty. Olalia, together with other lawyers from the NUPL, deals with high profile cases in the field of extrajudicial killings, enforced disappearances, demolitions of houses of the urban poor, privatization of government hospitals as well as cases related to various mass and people’s organizations.

Lawyers for Lawyers calls on the Philippine government to immediately and seriously protect and support all lawyers in the Philippines and take all measures necessary to stop the culture of impunity surrounding the acts of harassment and killings of members of the legal profession.

Militant groups sued over SONA protest
(The Philippine Star) | Updated August 1, 2013 – 12:00am

MANILA, Philippines – Leaders of militant groups, including former party-list lawmakers, have been slapped with criminal charges over the violent protest during President Aquino’s State of the Nation Address last July 22.

The Quezon City Police District (QCPD) on Monday filed before the prosecutor’s office a supplemental complaint for violation of Batas Pambansa 880, direct assault, malicious mischief and physical injuries against 14 persons.

Charged were former party-list representatives Satur Ocampo of Bayan Muna, Liza Maza of Gabriela, Teddy Casiño of Bayan Muna, and Rafael Mariano of Anakpawis.

Also named respondents were Renato Reyes of Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (Bayan), George San Mateo of Piston, Ferdinand Gaite of Courage, Antonio Tinio of ACT, Jerome Adonis of Kilusang Mayo Uno, Carlito Badion of Kadamay, Deunida Regalario of Kadamay, Willy Marbella of Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas, lawyer Edre Olalia of the National Union of People’s Lawyers, and Rasti Dalizo of Sanlakas.

Meanwhile, a Quezon City court yesterday junked the complaint filed against Mayor Herbert Bautista, QCPD director Chief Superintendent Richard Albano and Department of Public Order and Safety chief Elmo San Diego for denying Bayan’s application for a permit to hold rally near Batasang Pambansa last month. – Reinir Padua, Janvic Mateo

Statement of the National Union of Peoples’ Lawyers on complaint filed by police against  leaders of the People’s SONA rally

An even sillier move bereft of any legal or factual basis invoking an unjust law the police have time and again brazenly violated for its own dubious purposes.

It is pure and simple harassment to smokescreen the culpability of the police for the treacherous, unmitigated and unprovoked attack versus the protesters while negotiations were going on. Also, it is obviously meant to silence and intimidate dissenters through a devious strategic lawsuit against public participation.

We will stand by our clients even as we deplore the curiously gratuitous inclusion of our Secretary General who was at the rally together with our visibly identifiable fellow lawyers, law students n paralegals as usual Quick Reaction Teams in case of any situation requiring legal assistance or advice.  He was in fact accompanying the leaders to help them explain to the police the legal aspects of the public assembly and was in the course of negotiating with police representatives for an orderly, reasonable and mutually acceptable resolution to the impasse or standoff before the police disingenuously pulled a fast one by suddenly surging and attacking the protesters, hurting scores including himself.

This latest repressive move will certainly backfire on the authorities and exacerbate the mistrust and discontent of the people. It will also be another embarrassment before the international community.

Moreover, it exposes the hidden agenda to silence not only progressive leaders and their organizations but now even their lawyers in their criticism of government policies.

We believe the filing of this complaint serves as a long-awaited reprisal for our active representation of victims against top military and police officials and for handling various public interest cases and issues that threaten an unjust social, economic and political order.

Finally, this latest move betrays this government’s intolerance for dissent and criticism even through peaceful assemblies. It smacks of arrogance in cavalierly throwing the full weight of the state machinery to quell it.

REFERENCE:
ATTY. EDRE U. OLALIA
Secretary-General, National Union of Peoples’ Lawyers
Tel: +63917-5113373

National Secretariat
National Union of Peoples’ Lawyers (NUPL)
3F Erythrina Bldg., Maaralin corner Matatag Sts. Central District,Quezon City, Philippines
Telefax no.920-6660
Email addresses: nupl2007@gmail.com and nuplphilippines@yahoo.com Follow us on twitter @nuplphilippines and facebook @https://www.facebook.com/nuplphilippines
Visit the NUPL website at http://www.nupl.net/