Extrajudicial killings and forced disappearances in the Philippines
Encyclopedia
Extrajudicial killings and forced disappearances in the Philippines refer to the illegal liquidations, unlawful or felonious killings and forced disappearance
s in the Philippines
. These are forms of extrajudicial punishment
, and include extrajudicial executions, summary execution
s, arbitrary arrest and detention
s, and failed prosecutions due to political activities of leading political, trades union, dissident and/or social figures, left-wing political parties, non-governmental organizations, political journalists, outspoken clergy, anti-mining activists, agricultural reform activists, members of organizations that are allied or legal fronts of the communist movement like "Bayan group" or suspected supporters of the NPA and its political wing, the Communist Party of the Philippines
(CPP) by either the state government, state authorities like the armed forces and police (as in Liberia
under Charles G. Taylor), or by criminal outfits such as the Italian
Mafia
.
Aside from the Philippines
, extrajudicial killings, death squads and desaparecidos are most common in the Middle East
(mostly in Palestine and NPA controlled areas in the Philippines, Iraq
), among others.
Former Philippine Senate President Jovito Salonga
enumerated 3 main/current problems of the Philippines: poverty, graft and corruption in government and society, and increasing criminality including extrajudicial killings.
or convention
. They include assassinations; deaths due to strafing or indiscriminate firing; massacre; summary execution
is done if the victim becomes passive before the moment of death (i.e. forcible abduction leading to death); assassination
means forthwith or instant killing while massacre is akin to genocide
or mass extermination; thus, killings occurred in many regions or places throughout the Philippines in different times - 136 killings in Southern Tagalog region were recorded by human rights group Karapatan
from 2001 to May 19, 2006.
A forced disappearance
(desaparecidos), on the other hand, as form of extrajudicial punishment
is perpetrated by government officers, when any of its public officers abducts an individual, to vanish from public
view, resulting to murder
or plain sequestration
. The victim is first kidnapped, then illegally detained
in concentration camps, often torture
d, and finally executed and the corpse hidden. In Spanish
and Portuguese
, "disappeared people" are called desaparecidos, a term which specifically refers to the mostly South America
n victims of state terrorism
during the 1970s and the 1980s, in particular concerning Operation Condor
. In the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance
, "Enforced disappearance" is defined in Article 2 of the United Nations Convention Against Torture
as "the arrest, detention, abduction or any other form of deprivation of liberty by agents of the State or by persons or groups of persons acting with the authorization, support or acquiescence of the State, followed by a refusal to acknowledge the deprivation of liberty or by concealment of the fate or whereabouts of the disappeared person, which place such a person outside the protection of the law."
Even if Philippine Republic Act No. 7438 provides for the rights of persons arrested, detained, it does not punish acts of enforced disappearances. Thus, on August 27, Bayan Muna
(People First), Gabriela Women's Party (GWP), and Anakpawis
(Toiling Masses) filed House Bill 2263 - “An act defining and penalizing the crime of enforced or involuntary disappearance.” Sen. Jinggoy Estrada
also filed last June 30, 2007, Senate Bill No. 7 - “An Act Penalizing the Commission of Acts of Torture and Involuntary Disappearance of Persons Arrested, Detained or Under Custodial Investigation, and Granting Jurisdiction to the Commission on Human Rights to Conduct Preliminary Investigation for Violation of the Custodial Rights of the Accused, Amending for this Purpose Sections 2, 3 and 4 of RA 7438, and for Other Purposes.”
estate. The charges were filed by victims or their surviving relatives for torture, execution and disappearances. Human rights groups placed the number of victims of extrajudicial killings under martial law at 1500 and over 800 abductions; Karapatan
(a local human rights group's) records show 759 involuntarily disappeared (their bodies never found). Military historian Alfred McCoy in his book "Closer than Brothers: Manhood at the Philippine Military Academy" and in his speech "Dark Legacy" cites 3,257 extrajudicial killings, 35,000 torture victims, and 70,000 incarcerated during the Marcos years. The newspaper "Bulatlat" places the number of victims of arbitrary arrest and detention at 120,000. Alfred W. McCoy
(b. 1945) is a historian
and a Professor of History at the University of Wisconsin–Madison
. He earned his Bachelor of Arts
from Columbia College
, and his Ph.D
in Southeastern Asian
history from Yale University
.
The New People's Army
(NPA) groups known as "Sparrow Units" were active in the mid-1980s, killing government officials, police personnel, military members, and anyone else they targeted for elimination. They were also part of an NPA operation called "Agaw Armas" (Filipino
for "Stealing Weapons"), where they raided government armories as well as stealing weapons from slain military and police personnel. A low level civil war
with south Moslems, Al-Qaeda
sympathizers and communist insurgents has led to a general break down of law and order
. The Philippines government has promised to curb the killings, but is itself implicated in many of the killings.
Since 1975, the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) was deeply concerned in politics. Because of the armed conflict, the military continued its campaign versus the New People’s Army of the Communist Party of the Philippines
(CPP). Since 1969 it aimed to establish a Marxist regime with armed Rebellion
against the government. On top of all these chaos, left-wing non-governmental organizations (NGOs) were/are critical of the Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo
administration. The members who associated with the CPP and NPA had been targeted as victims in the spate of political killings. Human Rights Watch
investigated extrajudicial murders in the Philippines in September 2007.
3 major investigation groups were commissioned and their final reports had been submitted and published: the Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo
government-appointed bodies: a) Task Force Usig created by her on August; as a special police body, it was assigned to solve 10 cases of killings; it claimed having solved 21 cases, by initiating court cases, but only 12 suspects were arrested; b) the Melo Commission (chaired by Supreme Court Associate Justice Jose Melo) with members National Bureau of Investigation Director Nestor Mantaring, Chief State Prosecutor Jovencito Zuño, Bishop Juan de dios Pueblos, and Nelia Torres Gonzales; its final report states: "There is no official or sanctioned policy on the part of the military or its civilian superiors to resort to what other countries euphemistically call “alternative procedures”—meaning illegal liquidations. However, there is certainly evidence pointing the finger of suspicion at some elements and personalities in the armed forces, in particular General Jovito Palparan
, as responsible for an undetermined number of killings, by allowing, tolerating, and even encouraging the killings."(Melo Commission report, p. 53), and c) the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Extrajudicial Executions (February 12 to 21, 2007) - Philip Alston
met with government officials, civil society representatives, witnesses of extrajudicial killings, and the family members of victims. Philip Alston
, John Norton Pomeroy Professor of Law, is one of the foremost human rights thinkers. He is a Professor at NYU Law School, Director of the law school's Center for Human Rights and Global Justice, and also the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Extrajudicial, Summary or Arbitrary executions. Recently, Alston was sent to Brazil to investigate the Complexo do Alemão massacre
.
Writ of Habeas Corpus, on September 25, 2007, Chief Justice
Reynato Puno
signed and released the Writ of Amparo: "This rule will provide the victims of extralegal killings and enforced disappearances the protection they need and the promise of vindication for their rights. This rule empowers our courts to issue reliefs that may be granted through judicial orders of protection, production, inspection and other relief to safeguard one's life and liberty The writ of amparo shall hold public authorities, those who took their oath to defend the constitution and enforce our laws, to a high standard of official conduct and hold them accountable to our people. The sovereign Filipino people should be assured that if their right to life and liberty is threatened or violated, they will find vindication in our courts of justice'." Puno explained the interim reliefs under amparo: temporary protection order (TPO), inspection order (IO), production order (PO), and witness protection order (WPO, RA 6981). As supplement to Amparo, on August 30, 2007, Puno (at Silliman University
in Dumaguete City, Negros Oriental
) promised to release also the writ of habeas data (“you should have the idea” or “you should have the data”) another new legal remedy to solve the extrajudicial killings and enforced disappearances. Puno explained that the writ of amparo denies to authorities defense of simple denial, and habeas data can find out what information is held by the officer, rectify or even the destroy erroneous data gathered. Brazil
used the writ
, followed by Colombia
, Paraguay
, Peru
, Argentina
and Ecuador
.
From November 4 to the 12th, 2008, the Dutch Lawyers for Lawyers Foundation will conduct a follow-up verification and fact finding mission (IVFFM) in Manila and Mindanao
, with the National Host Committee, National Union of Peoples' Lawyers (NUPL) and the Counsels for the Defense of Liberties (CODAL). This team is composed of 8 judges and lawyers from Belgium
and Netherlands
, who had dialogue with Reynato Puno
on the probe of killings.
(AHRC) criticized the Writ of Amparo and Habeas Data (Philippines)
for being insufficient: "Though it responds to practical areas it is still necessary that further action must be taken in addition to this. The legislative bodies, House of Representatives
and Senate
, should also initiate its own actions promptly and without delay. They must enact laws which ensure protection of rights—laws against torture and enforced disappearance and laws to afford adequate legal remedies to victims." AHRC objected since the writ
failed to protect non-witnesses, even if they too face threats or risk to their lives.
Social Weather Stations
released the results of its 2 surveys on corruption in the judiciary
; it published that: a) like 1995, 1/4 of lawyers said many/very many judge
s are corrupt. But (49%) stated that a judges received bribes, just 8% of lawyers admitted they reported the bribery
, because they could not prove it. [Tables 8-9]; judges, however, said, just 7% call many/very many judges as corrupt[Tables 10-11];b) "Judges see some corruption; proportions who said - many/very many corrupt judges or justices: 17% in reference to RTC judges, 14% to MTC judges, 12% to Court of Appeals justices, 4% i to Shari'a Court judges, 4% to Sandiganbayan
justices and 2% in reference to Supreme Court justices [Table 15].
in the Philippines on November 23, 2009, 57 people were killed while enroute to file an electoral certificate of candidacy for Esmael Mangudadatu
, vice mayor of Buluan town, in upcoming gubernatorial elections for Maguindanao province
. The dead included Mangudadatu's wife, his two sisters, journalists, lawyers, aides, and motorists who were witnesses. At least 198 suspects were charged with murder
, including incumbent governor Andal Ampatuan Sr., and his son, Andal Ampatuan Jr. who was to be a candidate to succeed him. On November 16, 2010, the international non-governmental organization
Human Rights Watch
issued a 96 page report titled "They Own the People," charting the Ampatuans’ rise to power, including their use of violence to expand their control and eliminate threats to the family’s rule.
General:
Forced disappearance
In international human rights law, a forced disappearance occurs when a person is secretly abducted or imprisoned by a state or political organization or by a third party with the authorization, support, or acquiescence of a state or political organization, followed by a refusal to acknowledge the...
s in the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
. These are forms of extrajudicial punishment
Extrajudicial punishment
Extrajudicial punishment is punishment by the state or some other official authority without the permission of a court or legal authority. The existence of extrajudicial punishment is considered proof that some governments will break their own legal code if deemed necessary.-Nature:Extrajudicial...
, and include extrajudicial executions, summary execution
Summary execution
A summary execution is a variety of execution in which a person is killed on the spot without trial or after a show trial. Summary executions have been practiced by the police, military, and paramilitary organizations and are associated with guerrilla warfare, counter-insurgency, terrorism, and...
s, arbitrary arrest and detention
Arbitrary arrest and detention
Arbitrary arrest and arbitrary detention are the arrest or detention of an individual in a case in which there is no likelihood or evidence that they committed a crime against legal statute, or in which there has been no proper due process of law...
s, and failed prosecutions due to political activities of leading political, trades union, dissident and/or social figures, left-wing political parties, non-governmental organizations, political journalists, outspoken clergy, anti-mining activists, agricultural reform activists, members of organizations that are allied or legal fronts of the communist movement like "Bayan group" or suspected supporters of the NPA and its political wing, the Communist Party of the Philippines
Communist Party of the Philippines
The Communist Party of the Philippines is a leading communist party in the Philippines. It remains an underground political organization since its founding on December 26, 1968 and has been operating in clandestine manner since its founding...
(CPP) by either the state government, state authorities like the armed forces and police (as in Liberia
Liberia
Liberia , officially the Republic of Liberia, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Sierra Leone on the west, Guinea on the north and Côte d'Ivoire on the east. Liberia's coastline is composed of mostly mangrove forests while the more sparsely populated inland consists of forests that open...
under Charles G. Taylor), or by criminal outfits such as the Italian
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
Mafia
Mafia
The Mafia is a criminal syndicate that emerged in the mid-nineteenth century in Sicily, Italy. It is a loose association of criminal groups that share a common organizational structure and code of conduct, and whose common enterprise is protection racketeering...
.
Aside from the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
, extrajudicial killings, death squads and desaparecidos are most common in the Middle East
Middle East
The Middle East is a region that encompasses Western Asia and Northern Africa. It is often used as a synonym for Near East, in opposition to Far East...
(mostly in Palestine and NPA controlled areas in the Philippines, Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
), among others.
Former Philippine Senate President Jovito Salonga
Jovito Salonga
Jovito "Jovy" Reyes Salonga is a Filipino nationalist politician and lawyer, as well as a leading opposition leader during the Marcos regime from 1972, when Ferdinand Marcos declared martial law, until 1986, when Marcos was deposed as a result of a bloodless revolution...
enumerated 3 main/current problems of the Philippines: poverty, graft and corruption in government and society, and increasing criminality including extrajudicial killings.
Nature
Philippine extrajudicial killings are politically-motivated murders committed by government officers, punished by local and international lawInternational law
Public international law concerns the structure and conduct of sovereign states; analogous entities, such as the Holy See; and intergovernmental organizations. To a lesser degree, international law also may affect multinational corporations and individuals, an impact increasingly evolving beyond...
or convention
Treaty
A treaty is an express agreement under international law entered into by actors in international law, namely sovereign states and international organizations. A treaty may also be known as an agreement, protocol, covenant, convention or exchange of letters, among other terms...
. They include assassinations; deaths due to strafing or indiscriminate firing; massacre; summary execution
Summary execution
A summary execution is a variety of execution in which a person is killed on the spot without trial or after a show trial. Summary executions have been practiced by the police, military, and paramilitary organizations and are associated with guerrilla warfare, counter-insurgency, terrorism, and...
is done if the victim becomes passive before the moment of death (i.e. forcible abduction leading to death); assassination
Assassination
To carry out an assassination is "to murder by a sudden and/or secret attack, often for political reasons." Alternatively, assassination may be defined as "the act of deliberately killing someone, especially a public figure, usually for hire or for political reasons."An assassination may be...
means forthwith or instant killing while massacre is akin to genocide
Genocide
Genocide is defined as "the deliberate and systematic destruction, in whole or in part, of an ethnic, racial, religious, or national group", though what constitutes enough of a "part" to qualify as genocide has been subject to much debate by legal scholars...
or mass extermination; thus, killings occurred in many regions or places throughout the Philippines in different times - 136 killings in Southern Tagalog region were recorded by human rights group Karapatan
Karapatan
Karapatan, which translates as rights, is a human rights non-governmental organization in the Philippines. The full name of the group is KARAPATAN: Alliance for the Advancement of People's Rights.-History:...
from 2001 to May 19, 2006.
A forced disappearance
Forced disappearance
In international human rights law, a forced disappearance occurs when a person is secretly abducted or imprisoned by a state or political organization or by a third party with the authorization, support, or acquiescence of a state or political organization, followed by a refusal to acknowledge the...
(desaparecidos), on the other hand, as form of extrajudicial punishment
Extrajudicial punishment
Extrajudicial punishment is punishment by the state or some other official authority without the permission of a court or legal authority. The existence of extrajudicial punishment is considered proof that some governments will break their own legal code if deemed necessary.-Nature:Extrajudicial...
is perpetrated by government officers, when any of its public officers abducts an individual, to vanish from public
Public
In public relations and communication science, publics are groups of individuals, and the public is the totality of such groupings. This is a different concept to the sociological concept of the Öffentlichkeit or public sphere. The concept of a public has also been defined in political science,...
view, resulting to murder
Murder
Murder is the unlawful killing, with malice aforethought, of another human being, and generally this state of mind distinguishes murder from other forms of unlawful homicide...
or plain sequestration
Sequestration (law)
Sequestration is the act of removing, separating, or seizing anything from the possession of its owner under process of law for the benefit of creditors or the state.-Etymology:...
. The victim is first kidnapped, then illegally detained
Prison
A prison is a place in which people are physically confined and, usually, deprived of a range of personal freedoms. Imprisonment or incarceration is a legal penalty that may be imposed by the state for the commission of a crime...
in concentration camps, often torture
Torture
Torture is the act of inflicting severe pain as a means of punishment, revenge, forcing information or a confession, or simply as an act of cruelty. Throughout history, torture has often been used as a method of political re-education, interrogation, punishment, and coercion...
d, and finally executed and the corpse hidden. In Spanish
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
and Portuguese
Portuguese language
Portuguese is a Romance language that arose in the medieval Kingdom of Galicia, nowadays Galicia and Northern Portugal. The southern part of the Kingdom of Galicia became independent as the County of Portugal in 1095...
, "disappeared people" are called desaparecidos, a term which specifically refers to the mostly South America
South America
South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...
n victims of state terrorism
State terrorism
State terrorism may refer to acts of terrorism conducted by a state against a foreign state or people. It can also refer to acts of violence by a state against its own people.-Definition:...
during the 1970s and the 1980s, in particular concerning Operation Condor
Operation Condor
Operation Condor , was a campaign of political repression involving assassination and intelligence operations officially implemented in 1975 by the right-wing dictatorships of the Southern Cone of South America...
. In the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance
International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance
The International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance is an international human rights instrument of the United Nations and intended to prevent forced disappearance defined in international law, crimes against humanity. The text was adopted by the United...
, "Enforced disappearance" is defined in Article 2 of the United Nations Convention Against Torture
United Nations Convention Against Torture
The United Nations Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment is an international human rights instrument, under the review of the United Nations, that aims to prevent torture around the world....
as "the arrest, detention, abduction or any other form of deprivation of liberty by agents of the State or by persons or groups of persons acting with the authorization, support or acquiescence of the State, followed by a refusal to acknowledge the deprivation of liberty or by concealment of the fate or whereabouts of the disappeared person, which place such a person outside the protection of the law."
Even if Philippine Republic Act No. 7438 provides for the rights of persons arrested, detained, it does not punish acts of enforced disappearances. Thus, on August 27, Bayan Muna
Bayan Muna
Bayan Muna is a leftist political party in the Philippines.The motto of the party is "New Politics, the Politics of Change", against "traditional, elitist, pro-imperialist politics". Its platform includes the advocation of a government that progressively supports the working class, with meaningful...
(People First), Gabriela Women's Party (GWP), and Anakpawis
Anakpawis
Anakpawis is a party-list in the Philippines. The party-list is the electoral wing of the radical trade union movement Kilusang Mayo Uno.In the 2004 elections for the House of Representatives the party-list obtained 538,396 votes and two seats...
(Toiling Masses) filed House Bill 2263 - “An act defining and penalizing the crime of enforced or involuntary disappearance.” Sen. Jinggoy Estrada
Jinggoy Estrada
Jose Pimentel Ejercito, Jr. , better known as Jinggoy Ejercito Estrada, is a Filipino politician and former film actor who has been a member of the Senate of the Philippines since 2004...
also filed last June 30, 2007, Senate Bill No. 7 - “An Act Penalizing the Commission of Acts of Torture and Involuntary Disappearance of Persons Arrested, Detained or Under Custodial Investigation, and Granting Jurisdiction to the Commission on Human Rights to Conduct Preliminary Investigation for Violation of the Custodial Rights of the Accused, Amending for this Purpose Sections 2, 3 and 4 of RA 7438, and for Other Purposes.”
- For extrajudicial executions see also AssassinationAssassinationTo carry out an assassination is "to murder by a sudden and/or secret attack, often for political reasons." Alternatively, assassination may be defined as "the act of deliberately killing someone, especially a public figure, usually for hire or for political reasons."An assassination may be...
Marcos regime
In 1995 10,000 Filipinos won a U.S. class-suit against the MarcosFerdinand Marcos
Ferdinand Emmanuel Edralin Marcos, Sr. was a Filipino leader and an authoritarian President of the Philippines from 1965 to 1986. He was a lawyer, member of the Philippine House of Representatives and a member of the Philippine Senate...
estate. The charges were filed by victims or their surviving relatives for torture, execution and disappearances. Human rights groups placed the number of victims of extrajudicial killings under martial law at 1500 and over 800 abductions; Karapatan
Karapatan
Karapatan, which translates as rights, is a human rights non-governmental organization in the Philippines. The full name of the group is KARAPATAN: Alliance for the Advancement of People's Rights.-History:...
(a local human rights group's) records show 759 involuntarily disappeared (their bodies never found). Military historian Alfred McCoy in his book "Closer than Brothers: Manhood at the Philippine Military Academy" and in his speech "Dark Legacy" cites 3,257 extrajudicial killings, 35,000 torture victims, and 70,000 incarcerated during the Marcos years. The newspaper "Bulatlat" places the number of victims of arbitrary arrest and detention at 120,000. Alfred W. McCoy
Alfred W. McCoy
Alfred William McCoy is a historian of Southeast Asia. He is the J.R.W. Smail Professor of History at the University of Wisconsin–Madison. McCoy graduated from the Kent School in 1964. He earned his B.A...
(b. 1945) is a historian
Historian
A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human race; as well as the study of all history in time. If the individual is...
and a Professor of History at the University of Wisconsin–Madison
University of Wisconsin–Madison
The University of Wisconsin–Madison is a public research university located in Madison, Wisconsin, United States. Founded in 1848, UW–Madison is the flagship campus of the University of Wisconsin System. It became a land-grant institution in 1866...
. He earned his Bachelor of Arts
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
from Columbia College
Columbia College of Columbia University
Columbia College is the oldest undergraduate college at Columbia University, situated on the university's main campus in Morningside Heights in the borough of Manhattan in New York City. It was founded in 1754 by the Church of England as King's College, receiving a Royal Charter from King George II...
, and his Ph.D
Doctor of Philosophy
Doctor of Philosophy, abbreviated as Ph.D., PhD, D.Phil., or DPhil , in English-speaking countries, is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities...
in Southeastern Asian
Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia, South-East Asia, South East Asia or Southeastern Asia is a subregion of Asia, consisting of the countries that are geographically south of China, east of India, west of New Guinea and north of Australia. The region lies on the intersection of geological plates, with heavy seismic...
history from Yale University
Yale University
Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
.
The New People's Army
New People's Army
The New People's Army is the armed wing of the Communist Party of the Philippines. It was formed on March 29, 1969. The Maoist NPA conducts its armed guerrilla struggle based on the strategical line of 'protracted people's war'.The NPA exacts so called "revolutionary taxes" from business owners...
(NPA) groups known as "Sparrow Units" were active in the mid-1980s, killing government officials, police personnel, military members, and anyone else they targeted for elimination. They were also part of an NPA operation called "Agaw Armas" (Filipino
Filipino language
This move has drawn much criticism from other regional groups.In 1987, a new constitution introduced many provisions for the language.Article XIV, Section 6, omits any mention of Tagalog as the basis for Filipino, and states that:...
for "Stealing Weapons"), where they raided government armories as well as stealing weapons from slain military and police personnel. A low level civil war
Civil war
A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same nation state or republic, or, less commonly, between two countries created from a formerly-united nation state....
with south Moslems, Al-Qaeda
Al-Qaeda
Al-Qaeda is a global broad-based militant Islamist terrorist organization founded by Osama bin Laden sometime between August 1988 and late 1989. It operates as a network comprising both a multinational, stateless army and a radical Sunni Muslim movement calling for global Jihad...
sympathizers and communist insurgents has led to a general break down of law and order
Law and order (politics)
In politics, law and order refers to demands for a strict criminal justice system, especially in relation to violent and property crime, through harsher criminal penalties...
. The Philippines government has promised to curb the killings, but is itself implicated in many of the killings.
Since 1975, the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) was deeply concerned in politics. Because of the armed conflict, the military continued its campaign versus the New People’s Army of the Communist Party of the Philippines
Communist Party of the Philippines
The Communist Party of the Philippines is a leading communist party in the Philippines. It remains an underground political organization since its founding on December 26, 1968 and has been operating in clandestine manner since its founding...
(CPP). Since 1969 it aimed to establish a Marxist regime with armed Rebellion
Rebellion
Rebellion, uprising or insurrection, is a refusal of obedience or order. It may, therefore, be seen as encompassing a range of behaviors aimed at destroying or replacing an established authority such as a government or a head of state...
against the government. On top of all these chaos, left-wing non-governmental organizations (NGOs) were/are critical of the Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo
Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo
Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo is a Filipino politician who served as the 14th President of the Philippines from 2001 to 2010, as the 12th Vice President of the Philippines from 1998 to 2001, and is currently a member of the House of Representatives representing the 2nd District of Pampanga...
administration. The members who associated with the CPP and NPA had been targeted as victims in the spate of political killings. Human Rights Watch
Human Rights Watch
Human Rights Watch is an international non-governmental organization that conducts research and advocacy on human rights. Its headquarters are in New York City and it has offices in Berlin, Beirut, Brussels, Chicago, Geneva, Johannesburg, London, Los Angeles, Moscow, Paris, San Francisco, Tokyo,...
investigated extrajudicial murders in the Philippines in September 2007.
Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo
Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo is a Filipino politician who served as the 14th President of the Philippines from 2001 to 2010, as the 12th Vice President of the Philippines from 1998 to 2001, and is currently a member of the House of Representatives representing the 2nd District of Pampanga...
government-appointed bodies: a) Task Force Usig created by her on August; as a special police body, it was assigned to solve 10 cases of killings; it claimed having solved 21 cases, by initiating court cases, but only 12 suspects were arrested; b) the Melo Commission (chaired by Supreme Court Associate Justice Jose Melo) with members National Bureau of Investigation Director Nestor Mantaring, Chief State Prosecutor Jovencito Zuño, Bishop Juan de dios Pueblos, and Nelia Torres Gonzales; its final report states: "There is no official or sanctioned policy on the part of the military or its civilian superiors to resort to what other countries euphemistically call “alternative procedures”—meaning illegal liquidations. However, there is certainly evidence pointing the finger of suspicion at some elements and personalities in the armed forces, in particular General Jovito Palparan
Jovito Palparan
Jovito Salvaña Palparan, Jr. is a Filipino Congressman representing the Bantay party-list group in the 14th Congress of the Philippines. He is also a retired army general, who was a prominent figure in the campaign against communist insurgents in the Philippines...
, as responsible for an undetermined number of killings, by allowing, tolerating, and even encouraging the killings."(Melo Commission report, p. 53), and c) the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Extrajudicial Executions (February 12 to 21, 2007) - Philip Alston
Philip Alston
Philip G. Alston is an international law scholar and human rights practitioner. He is John Norton Pomeroy Professor of Law at New York University School of Law, and co-Chair of the law school's Center for Human Rights and Global Justice...
met with government officials, civil society representatives, witnesses of extrajudicial killings, and the family members of victims. Philip Alston
Philip Alston
Philip G. Alston is an international law scholar and human rights practitioner. He is John Norton Pomeroy Professor of Law at New York University School of Law, and co-Chair of the law school's Center for Human Rights and Global Justice...
, John Norton Pomeroy Professor of Law, is one of the foremost human rights thinkers. He is a Professor at NYU Law School, Director of the law school's Center for Human Rights and Global Justice, and also the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Extrajudicial, Summary or Arbitrary executions. Recently, Alston was sent to Brazil to investigate the Complexo do Alemão massacre
Complexo do Alemão massacre
The Complexo do Alemão massacre was the result of an ongoing conflict between drug dealers and the police in the borough of the same name in Rio de Janeiro, which consisted of a group of large favelas in the northern region of the city. The massacre happened on June 27, 2007, when a huge Military...
.
Malacañang's Peace Summit and Puno's Killings Summit
- Because of the magnitude of Philippine killings and desaparecidos, 22nd Chief JusticeChief JusticeThe Chief Justice in many countries is the name for the presiding member of a Supreme Court in Commonwealth or other countries with an Anglo-Saxon justice system based on English common law, such as the Supreme Court of Canada, the Constitutional Court of South Africa, the Court of Final Appeal of...
Reynato PunoReynato PunoReynato Puno y Serrano was the 22nd Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the Philippines. Appointed on December 8, 2006 by President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, he was the 22nd person to serve as Chief Justice...
/ Supreme Court of the PhilippinesSupreme Court of the PhilippinesThe Supreme Court of the Philippines is the Philippines' highest judicial court, as well as the court of last resort. The court consists of 14 Associate Justices and 1 Chief Justice...
called a National Consultative Summit on extrajudicial killings on July 16 and 17, 2007 at the Manila HotelManila HotelThe Manila Hotel is a 570-room, five star hotel in Manila, Philippines, located in the heart of the Manila Bay area. The Manila Hotel is the oldest premiere hotel in the Philippines, built in 1909 to rival Malacañang Palace, the official residence of the President of the Philippines, and opened in...
. Invited representatives from the 3 branches of the government participated (including the Armed Forces of the PhilippinesArmed Forces of the PhilippinesThe Armed Forces of the Philippines is composed of the Philippine Army, Philippine Navy and Philippine Air Force...
, the PNPPNP-Science and technology:* Legacy Plug and Play or PnP, an ISA bus extension, a special case of Plug and play* Principles and parameters, a linguistics framework* PNP, a type of Bipolar junction transistor...
, CHRCommission on Human Rights (Philippines)The Commission on Human Rights is an independent office created by the Constitution of the Philippines, with the primary function of investigating all forms of human rights violations involving civil and political rights in the Philippines....
, media, academe, civil societyCivil societyCivil society is composed of the totality of many voluntary social relationships, civic and social organizations, and institutions that form the basis of a functioning society, as distinct from the force-backed structures of a state , the commercial institutions of the market, and private criminal...
and other stakeholders). On the other hand, the Malacañang-sponsored "Mindanao Peace and Security Summit" (July 8–10, 2007 at Cagayan de Oro CityCagayan de Oro CityCagayan de Oro; , officially the City of Cagayan de Oro, is the provincial capital city of the province of Misamis Oriental in the Philippines...
) concentrated on the anti-terror law, or the Human Security Act (HSA) of 2007, to make it more acceptable to the public. At the July 16 summit, Reynato PunoReynato PunoReynato Puno y Serrano was the 22nd Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the Philippines. Appointed on December 8, 2006 by President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, he was the 22nd person to serve as Chief Justice...
stated that he Commission on Human Rights reported the number of victims at 403 from 2001 to May 31, 2007, while KarapatanKarapatanKarapatan, which translates as rights, is a human rights non-governmental organization in the Philippines. The full name of the group is KARAPATAN: Alliance for the Advancement of People's Rights.-History:...
reported 863 deaths until 2007, and more than 900 as of May, 2008, and most of them were members of left wing groups. KarapatanKarapatanKarapatan, which translates as rights, is a human rights non-governmental organization in the Philippines. The full name of the group is KARAPATAN: Alliance for the Advancement of People's Rights.-History:...
further officially placed the number of victims of human rights violations: forced evacuations or displacement at 7,442, by indiscriminate firing with 5,459 victims, and food and economic blockade with 3,042. The rights group Desparecidos officially reported as of May 15, 2008, 194 victims of enforced disappearances under the Arroyo administration, with the latest abduction of National Democratic Front political consultant for Cagayan Valley, activist Randy Felix Malayao, 39, a volunteer worker.
- Counsels for the Defense of Liberties (CODAL), Philippines, a lawyers’ organization stated that since 2001, 26 lawyers and 10 judgeJudgeA judge is a person who presides over court proceedings, either alone or as part of a panel of judges. The powers, functions, method of appointment, discipline, and training of judges vary widely across different jurisdictions. The judge is supposed to conduct the trial impartially and in an open...
s were killed due to their professions; 755 civilians had been killed extrajudicially, while 359 survived attacks, but 184 persons were still missing.
- Bishop Deogracias Iñiguez stated that on the CBCPCBCPCBCP may refer to one of the following:*Certified Building Commissioning Professional, an Association of Energy Engineers certification*Cross-Border Co-operation Process, a European union initiative*Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines...
/ Catholic Church's count, the number of victims of extrajudicial killings is 778, while survivors of "political assassinations" reached 370; 203 "massacre" were victims, 186, missing or involuntarily disappeared, 502, tortured, or illegally arrested. Iñiguez denounced the government's implementation of its Oplan Bantay Laya I and II.
Promulgation of Writs of Amparo and Habeas Data
Because of the inefficacy and insufficiency of the PhilippinesPhilippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
Writ of Habeas Corpus, on September 25, 2007, Chief Justice
Chief Justice
The Chief Justice in many countries is the name for the presiding member of a Supreme Court in Commonwealth or other countries with an Anglo-Saxon justice system based on English common law, such as the Supreme Court of Canada, the Constitutional Court of South Africa, the Court of Final Appeal of...
Reynato Puno
Reynato Puno
Reynato Puno y Serrano was the 22nd Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the Philippines. Appointed on December 8, 2006 by President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, he was the 22nd person to serve as Chief Justice...
signed and released the Writ of Amparo: "This rule will provide the victims of extralegal killings and enforced disappearances the protection they need and the promise of vindication for their rights. This rule empowers our courts to issue reliefs that may be granted through judicial orders of protection, production, inspection and other relief to safeguard one's life and liberty The writ of amparo shall hold public authorities, those who took their oath to defend the constitution and enforce our laws, to a high standard of official conduct and hold them accountable to our people. The sovereign Filipino people should be assured that if their right to life and liberty is threatened or violated, they will find vindication in our courts of justice'." Puno explained the interim reliefs under amparo: temporary protection order (TPO), inspection order (IO), production order (PO), and witness protection order (WPO, RA 6981). As supplement to Amparo, on August 30, 2007, Puno (at Silliman University
Silliman University
Silliman University is a private research university located in Dumaguete, Philippines. Established in 1901 as Silliman Institute by the Presbyterian Board of Foreign Missions, it was the first American private school to be founded in the country. The University is named after Dr...
in Dumaguete City, Negros Oriental
Negros Oriental
Negros Oriental is a province of the Philippines located in the Central Visayas region. It occupies the south-eastern half of the island of Negros, with Negros Occidental comprising the north-western half. It also includes Apo Island — a popular dive site for both local and foreign tourists...
) promised to release also the writ of habeas data (“you should have the idea” or “you should have the data”) another new legal remedy to solve the extrajudicial killings and enforced disappearances. Puno explained that the writ of amparo denies to authorities defense of simple denial, and habeas data can find out what information is held by the officer, rectify or even the destroy erroneous data gathered. Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
used the writ
Writ
In common law, a writ is a formal written order issued by a body with administrative or judicial jurisdiction; in modern usage, this body is generally a court...
, followed by Colombia
Colombia
Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia , is a unitary constitutional republic comprising thirty-two departments. The country is located in northwestern South America, bordered to the east by Venezuela and Brazil; to the south by Ecuador and Peru; to the north by the Caribbean Sea; to the...
, Paraguay
Paraguay
Paraguay , officially the Republic of Paraguay , is a landlocked country in South America. It is bordered by Argentina to the south and southwest, Brazil to the east and northeast, and Bolivia to the northwest. Paraguay lies on both banks of the Paraguay River, which runs through the center of the...
, Peru
Peru
Peru , officially the Republic of Peru , is a country in western South America. It is bordered on the north by Ecuador and Colombia, on the east by Brazil, on the southeast by Bolivia, on the south by Chile, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean....
, Argentina
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
and Ecuador
Ecuador
Ecuador , officially the Republic of Ecuador is a representative democratic republic in South America, bordered by Colombia on the north, Peru on the east and south, and by the Pacific Ocean to the west. It is one of only two countries in South America, along with Chile, that do not have a border...
.
- On December 3, 2007, Reynato S. Puno stated that the writ released only 3 victims (including Luisito Bustamante, Davao CityDavao CityThe City of Davao is the largest city in the island of Mindanao in the Philippines. Its international airport and seaports are among the busiest cargo hubs in the Philippines....
), since amparo was enforced on October 24: "I would like to think that after the enactment and effectivity (of the writ), the number of extrajudicial killings and disappearances have gone down."
- On December 17, 2007, IloiloIloiloIloilo is a province of the Philippines located in the Western Visayas region. Iloilo occupies the southeast portion of Panay Island and is bordered by Antique Province to the west and Capiz Province and the Jintotolo Channel to the north. Just off Iloilo's southeast coast is Guimaras Province,...
regional trial court Judge Narciso Aguilar granted a writ of amparo against President Gloria Macapagal-ArroyoGloria Macapagal-ArroyoGloria Macapagal-Arroyo is a Filipino politician who served as the 14th President of the Philippines from 2001 to 2010, as the 12th Vice President of the Philippines from 1998 to 2001, and is currently a member of the House of Representatives representing the 2nd District of Pampanga...
and 9 military and police officials to release Nilo Arado and Maria Luisa Posa-Dominado activists abducted on April 12.
- On December 19, 2007, Dra. Edita Burgos petitioned the Philippine Court of AppealsPhilippine Court of AppealsThe Court of Appeals of the Philippines is the Philippines' second highest judicial court, just after the Supreme Court. The court consists of 68 Associate Justices and 1 Presiding Justice...
to issue a writ of amparo against Armed Forces chief Gen. Hermogenes Esperon Jr and Army chief Lt. Gen. Alexander Yano regarding her son Jonas's abduction on April 28.
- On December 27, 2007, the 2nd Division, Court of Appeals 30-page decision penned by Associate Justice Lucas Bersamin granted the writ of amparo filed by Reynaldo and Raymond Manalo, abducted activists.
- For other legal remedies see also Writ of Amparo and Habeas Data (Philippines)Writ of Amparo and Habeas Data (Philippines)In the Philippines, amparo and habeas data are prerogative writs to supplement the inefficacy of the writ of habeas corpus . Amparo means protection, while habeas data is access to information...
International groups' 2006 and 2008 probe of killings
On 2006, the Dutch Lawyers for Lawyers Foundation and Lawyers without Borders with the support of the Netherlands Bar Association, the Amsterdam Bar Association and the International Association of Democratic Lawyers created a fact-finding mission in different parts of the Philippines. The international groups conducted interviews of various legal sectors from June 15 to June 20, 2006.From November 4 to the 12th, 2008, the Dutch Lawyers for Lawyers Foundation will conduct a follow-up verification and fact finding mission (IVFFM) in Manila and Mindanao
Mindanao
Mindanao is the second largest and easternmost island in the Philippines. It is also the name of one of the three island groups in the country, which consists of the island of Mindanao and smaller surrounding islands. The other two are Luzon and the Visayas. The island of Mindanao is called The...
, with the National Host Committee, National Union of Peoples' Lawyers (NUPL) and the Counsels for the Defense of Liberties (CODAL). This team is composed of 8 judges and lawyers from Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
and Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
, who had dialogue with Reynato Puno
Reynato Puno
Reynato Puno y Serrano was the 22nd Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the Philippines. Appointed on December 8, 2006 by President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, he was the 22nd person to serve as Chief Justice...
on the probe of killings.
International criticism
On September 28, 2007, the Asian Human Rights CommissionAsian Human Rights Commission
The Asian Human Rights Commission is an independent, non-governmental body, which seeks to promote greater awareness and realisation of human rights in the Asian region, and to mobilise Asian and international public opinion to obtain relief and redress for the victims of human rights violations...
(AHRC) criticized the Writ of Amparo and Habeas Data (Philippines)
Writ of Amparo and Habeas Data (Philippines)
In the Philippines, amparo and habeas data are prerogative writs to supplement the inefficacy of the writ of habeas corpus . Amparo means protection, while habeas data is access to information...
for being insufficient: "Though it responds to practical areas it is still necessary that further action must be taken in addition to this. The legislative bodies, House of Representatives
House of Representatives of the Philippines
The House of Representatives of the Philippines is the lower chamber of the...
and Senate
Senate of the Philippines
The Senate of the Philippines is the upper chamber of the bicameral legislature of the Philippines, the Congress of the Philippines...
, should also initiate its own actions promptly and without delay. They must enact laws which ensure protection of rights—laws against torture and enforced disappearance and laws to afford adequate legal remedies to victims." AHRC objected since the writ
Writ
In common law, a writ is a formal written order issued by a body with administrative or judicial jurisdiction; in modern usage, this body is generally a court...
failed to protect non-witnesses, even if they too face threats or risk to their lives.
Alston UN Report
- Philip AlstonPhilip AlstonPhilip G. Alston is an international law scholar and human rights practitioner. He is John Norton Pomeroy Professor of Law at New York University School of Law, and co-Chair of the law school's Center for Human Rights and Global Justice...
submitted his final report on the killings; he found that the Armed Forces of the Philippines killed left-wing activists to get rid of communist insurgents: "the executions had “eliminated civil society leaders, including human rights defenders, trade unionists and land reform advocates, intimidated a vast number of civil society actors, and narrowed the country’s political discourse.” Alston denied for lack of merit the government's claim that killings were perpetrated by communists to exterminate spies and to make negative propaganda versus government. Alston, on February, 2007 stated that the military made alibis or denials on its role about 800 deaths of activists and journalists since 2001. Alston blamed “impunity” which caused the executions of journalists and leftist activists: “the priorities of the criminal justice system had been “distorted,” and had “increasingly focused on prosecuting civil society leaders rather than their killers.” But Alston noted the government's creation of - special courts to try extrajudicial killings, the Melo Commission and the Philippine National Police’s Task Force Usig. In the November U.N. Alston report - the killings in 2007 was only 68, huge drop from the 209 murdered in 2006. KarapatanKarapatanKarapatan, which translates as rights, is a human rights non-governmental organization in the Philippines. The full name of the group is KARAPATAN: Alliance for the Advancement of People's Rights.-History:...
published its report however, listing 830 victims of extrajudicial killings since 2001, under Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo. On March 1, 2007, the Supreme Court of the PhilippinesSupreme Court of the PhilippinesThe Supreme Court of the Philippines is the Philippines' highest judicial court, as well as the court of last resort. The court consists of 14 Associate Justices and 1 Chief Justice...
issued Administrative Order No. 25-2007, which created by designation 99 regional trial courts to try cases of killings and desaparecidos.
Failed Investigations and Prosecutions
- The United Nations Special Rapporteur on Extrajudicial Execution found that just on paper trails, cases are filed; but Alston officially concluded that “there is a passivity, bordering on an abdication of responsibility, which affects the way in which key institutions and actors approach their responsibilities in relation to such human rights concerns; prosecutors refused to take a role in gathering evidence, and instead being purely passive, waiting for the police to present them with a file; the Ombudsman’s office did almost nothing in recent years in this regard, failing to act in any of the 44 complaints alleging extrajudicial executions attributed to State agents submitted from 2002 to 2006." (“Preliminary note on the visit of the Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions, Philip Alston, to the Philippines (12–21 February 2007),” A/HRC/4/20/Add.3, March 22, 2007, p. 4., etc.)
The Eric G. John and G. Eugene Martin Testimonies
- On March 14, 2007, Eric G. John, Deputy Assistant Secretary for East Asian and Pacific Affairs testified before the USA Senate Subcommittee on Foreign Relations at Washington, D.C.Washington, D.C.Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
. John submitted his written statement: a) the increase in extrajudicial killings, b) the “Huk Rebellion” in the 1940s and 50s causing thousands of murdered victims; c) the communist New People’s Army (NPA), which was listed in the U.S. State Department list of Foreign Terrorist OrganizationsU.S. State Department list of Foreign Terrorist Organizations"Foreign Terrorist Organization" is a designation of non-United States-based organizations declared terrorist by the United States Secretary of State in accordance with section 219 of the U.S. Immigration and Nationality Act...
campaigned to overthrow the government since 1968; d) Extrajudicial killings by the security forces, the NPA, etc. during the Marcos regime, were less; and e) noted the report of UN Special Rapporteur Alston which submitted the Philippine Government’s recognition of the gravity of the problem, expresses concern about the views of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) regarding the problem, but much had to be done.
- G. Eugene Martin, U.S. Institute of Peace Executive Director of the Philippine Facilitation Project, testified before the Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on East Asian and Pacific Affairs, and submitted to it the Asian Legal Resource Centre (ALRC) statement on the killings, a Joint Statement submitted by the World Council of Churches, the Asia Pacific Forum on Women, Law and Development and the Asian Legal Resource Center (ALRC) to the 6th Human Rights Council. Martin stated that the Philippine government said that it implemented measures to stop the killings, but he submitted that the reforms made did not and will not resolve the killings. Mr. Alston's March report stated that "the question of resources or technical expertise will partly resolve the killings but the strong risk is that these measures will treat only some of the symptoms of the crisis, and will fail to address meaningfully two of the most important underlying causes of a great many of the killings." (A/HRC/4/20/Add.3, March 22, 2007) Alston named 2 root causes of the killings a) 'vilification', 'labeling’, or guilt by association” - "characterization of most groups on the left of the political spectrum as ‘front organizations’ for armed groups whose aim is to destroy democracy" making the groups "considered to be legitimate targets; and b) the 2nd cause is the Government’s counter-insurgency strategy's extent of facilitating killings of activists and others. G. Eugene Martin specifically expanded the 2 causes of the violence and killings: a) weak political and social institutions, corrupt and ineffective judicial system, resulting to failure to obtain justice from corrupt Philippine courts; and b) the legacy of the Ferdinand MarcosFerdinand MarcosFerdinand Emmanuel Edralin Marcos, Sr. was a Filipino leader and an authoritarian President of the Philippines from 1965 to 1986. He was a lawyer, member of the Philippine House of Representatives and a member of the Philippine Senate...
regime; Martial lawMartial lawMartial law is the imposition of military rule by military authorities over designated regions on an emergency basis— only temporary—when the civilian government or civilian authorities fail to function effectively , when there are extensive riots and protests, or when the disobedience of the law...
caused the corrupt system where soldiers, police, judges and prosecutors became principals of offenses like extralegal arrest, detention, incarceration, disappearances and killings (salvaging), all permitted or allowed. He traced the spate of violence and killings to political instability of President Arroyo government; while she created the Independent Commission to Address Media and Activist Killings, Melo Commission, she had no capability to end the killings, due to her political lameness because of the 2004 election controversy.
FIDH Report
- 3 FIDH experts, Mr. Nabeel Rajab (Bahrain), Mr. Mouloud Boumghar (France) and Mr. Frédéric Ceuppens (Belgium), came to the Philippines on August 13 to 23, 2007. Their FIDH mission report stated that torture and ill-treatment was widespread versus suspected “terrorists”. The Filipino government is a signatory to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), and the UN Convention against Torture (CAT). The FIDH dismissed the Philippines government's claim doubts that mechanisms were placed to stop the killings, as it questioned the efficiency of - the corrupt judiciary, the government “Witness Protection Programme” ; also, judges and lawyers were victims themselves of killings. It also found the Philippine anti-terrorism law ( “Human Security Act”) to result in more torture and extrajudicial killings as a fight against terrorism.
2008 US Department of State Report
On March 11, 2008, the US Department of State reported that "arbitrary, unlawful arrests and extrajudicial and political killings continued to be a major problem in the Philippines in 2007" (Country Reports on Human Rights Practices - 2007, Released by the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor March 11, 2008 http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/hrrpt/2007/100535.htm). Washington stated that "many of these killings went unsolved and unpunished despite intensified efforts of the government to investigate and prosecute these cases."Judicial corruption
On January 25, 2005, and on December 10, 2006, PhilippinesPhilippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
Social Weather Stations
Social Weather Stations
The Social Weather Stations or SWS is a public opinion polling body in the Philippines. It is a private, independent, non-partisan, non-profit scientific institute in the Philippines which conducts social surveys and does survey-based social science research and other educational activities, using...
released the results of its 2 surveys on corruption in the judiciary
Judiciary
The judiciary is the system of courts that interprets and applies the law in the name of the state. The judiciary also provides a mechanism for the resolution of disputes...
; it published that: a) like 1995, 1/4 of lawyers said many/very many judge
Judge
A judge is a person who presides over court proceedings, either alone or as part of a panel of judges. The powers, functions, method of appointment, discipline, and training of judges vary widely across different jurisdictions. The judge is supposed to conduct the trial impartially and in an open...
s are corrupt. But (49%) stated that a judges received bribes, just 8% of lawyers admitted they reported the bribery
Bribery
Bribery, a form of corruption, is an act implying money or gift giving that alters the behavior of the recipient. Bribery constitutes a crime and is defined by Black's Law Dictionary as the offering, giving, receiving, or soliciting of any item of value to influence the actions of an official or...
, because they could not prove it. [Tables 8-9]; judges, however, said, just 7% call many/very many judges as corrupt[Tables 10-11];b) "Judges see some corruption; proportions who said - many/very many corrupt judges or justices: 17% in reference to RTC judges, 14% to MTC judges, 12% to Court of Appeals justices, 4% i to Shari'a Court judges, 4% to Sandiganbayan
Sandiganbayan
The Sandiganbayan is a special court in the Philippines which was established under Presidential Decree No. 1606. Its rank is equivalent to the Court of Appeals. The court consists of 14 Associate Justices and 1 Presiding Justice...
justices and 2% in reference to Supreme Court justices [Table 15].
Maguindanao massacre
In the Maguindanao massacreMaguindanao massacre
The Maguindanao massacre, also known as the Ampatuan massacre after the town where the mass graves were found, occurred on the morning of November 23, 2009, in the town of Ampatuan in Maguindanao province, on the island of Mindanao in the Philippines...
in the Philippines on November 23, 2009, 57 people were killed while enroute to file an electoral certificate of candidacy for Esmael Mangudadatu
Esmael Mangudadatu
Esmael “Toto" Mangudadatu or is the Governor of Maguindanao, in the Philippines. Mangudadatu was elected for governor of Maguindanao after defeating his closest rival, Ombra Sinsuat by a margin of 12,705 votes...
, vice mayor of Buluan town, in upcoming gubernatorial elections for Maguindanao province
Maguindanao
Maguindanao is a province of the Philippines located in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao . Its capital is Shariff Aguak. It borders Lanao del Sur to the north, Cotabato to the east, and Sultan Kudarat to the south....
. The dead included Mangudadatu's wife, his two sisters, journalists, lawyers, aides, and motorists who were witnesses. At least 198 suspects were charged with murder
Murder
Murder is the unlawful killing, with malice aforethought, of another human being, and generally this state of mind distinguishes murder from other forms of unlawful homicide...
, including incumbent governor Andal Ampatuan Sr., and his son, Andal Ampatuan Jr. who was to be a candidate to succeed him. On November 16, 2010, the international non-governmental organization
Non-governmental organization
A non-governmental organization is a legally constituted organization created by natural or legal persons that operates independently from any government. The term originated from the United Nations , and is normally used to refer to organizations that do not form part of the government and are...
Human Rights Watch
Human Rights Watch
Human Rights Watch is an international non-governmental organization that conducts research and advocacy on human rights. Its headquarters are in New York City and it has offices in Berlin, Beirut, Brussels, Chicago, Geneva, Johannesburg, London, Los Angeles, Moscow, Paris, San Francisco, Tokyo,...
issued a 96 page report titled "They Own the People," charting the Ampatuans’ rise to power, including their use of violence to expand their control and eliminate threats to the family’s rule.
Events
- On February, 2007, The U.S. ambassador to the Philippines has broken her silence and called on Manila to end extrajudicial killings. On Feb. 27, U.S. ambassador Kristie KenneyKristie KenneyKristie Anne Kenney is an American diplomat and the current United States Ambassador to Thailand. She previously served as the United States Ambassador to the Republic of the Philippines. She is the first female U.S. Ambassador to both countries...
U.S. ambassador to the Philippines alerted Mrs. Arroyo as she voiced her call to end these killings: "Let's beef up the human rights in the Armed Forces of the Philippines and make every effort to investigate, prosecute those responsible, [and] exonerate the innocent."
- On August, 2007, the International Day of the DisappearedInternational Day of the DisappearedThe International Day of the Disappeared on August 30 is an annual commemoration day created to draw attention to the fate of individuals imprisoned at places and under poor conditions unknown to their relatives and/or legal representatives...
, Asian Human Rights CommissionAsian Human Rights CommissionThe Asian Human Rights Commission is an independent, non-governmental body, which seeks to promote greater awareness and realisation of human rights in the Asian region, and to mobilise Asian and international public opinion to obtain relief and redress for the victims of human rights violations...
(AHRC) ranked the PhilippinesPhilippinesThe Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
among the top eight countries in AsiaAsiaAsia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
where forced disappearances of activists are not just rampant but are done with impunity. Sri LankaSri LankaSri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is a country off the southern coast of the Indian subcontinent. Known until 1972 as Ceylon , Sri Lanka is an island surrounded by the Indian Ocean, the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait, and lies in the vicinity of India and the...
heads the list (statement posted on its website (www.ahrchk.net). The activists took part in the recent Human Rights School Session of the AHRC for 2007. The AHRC listed the other countries where forced disappearances take place with impunity: PakistanPakistanPakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
, IndonesiaIndonesiaIndonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
, BangladeshBangladeshBangladesh , officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh is a sovereign state located in South Asia. It is bordered by India on all sides except for a small border with Burma to the far southeast and by the Bay of Bengal to the south...
, NepalNepalNepal , officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked sovereign state located in South Asia. It is located in the Himalayas and bordered to the north by the People's Republic of China, and to the south, east, and west by the Republic of India...
, ThailandThailandThailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
, PhilippinesPhilippinesThe Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
and parts of IndiaIndiaIndia , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
.
- On September, 2007, Marie Hilao-Enriquez, KarapatanKarapatanKarapatan, which translates as rights, is a human rights non-governmental organization in the Philippines. The full name of the group is KARAPATAN: Alliance for the Advancement of People's Rights.-History:...
secretary-general, formally petitioned the United Nations Human Rights CouncilUnited Nations Human Rights CouncilThe United Nations Human Rights Council is an inter-governmental body within the United Nations System. The UNHRC is the successor to the United Nations Commission on Human Rights , and is a subsidiary body of the United Nations General Assembly...
(UNHRC) to direct the Philippine government to stop the extrajudicial killings. She filed the report on 60 cases killings have been recorded by Karapatan from January to June, 2007, alone, with 17 cases of disappearances, 12 of torture and 113, of illegal arrests.
- On October 3, 2007 at Tarlac CityTarlac CityThe City of Tarlac is a 1st class city in the province of Tarlac, Philippines. Tarlac provincial capitol building is shown on the back of the Philippines 500 peso note that features former Senator Benigno Aquino Jr...
, 69-year-old Bishop Alberto Ramento of the Iglesia Filipina Independiente (IFI), or Philippine Independent ChurchPhilippine Independent ChurchThe Philippine Independent Church, The Philippine Independent Church, The Philippine Independent Church, (officially the or the IFI, also known as the Philippine Independent Catholic Church or in Ilocano: Siwawayawaya nga Simbaan ti Filipinas (in in Kinaray-a/Hiligaynon: Simbahan Hilway nga...
, and a vocal critic of killings under the Arroyo government, was stabbed 7 times and killed.
- The December 11, 2006 Philippines National Police’s Task Force Usig submitted 115 cases of “slain party list /militant members” since 2001, and 26 cases of “mediamen.” The Philippine Daily InquirerPhilippine Daily InquirerThe Philippine Daily Inquirer, popularly known as the Inquirer, is the most widely read broadsheet newspaper in the Philippines, with a daily circulation of 260,000 copies. It is one of the Philippines' newspapers of record...
published 299 killings from October 2001 and April 2007 (See e.g. Alcuin Papa, “3 US solons to PNP: Respect human rights,” Philippine Daily Inquirer, April 18, 2007)
- The December, 2007 year end report of KarapatanKarapatanKarapatan, which translates as rights, is a human rights non-governmental organization in the Philippines. The full name of the group is KARAPATAN: Alliance for the Advancement of People's Rights.-History:...
(Alliance for the Advance of People’s Rights) noted only 68 extrajudicial killings vis-a-vis year 2006 209 victims. Karapatan also reported 16,307 human rights violations just for 2007 (which include killings to forcible displacement of communities). Therefore, aside from the 887 killings since 2001 under Mrs. Arroyo, Karapatan, just for 2007, underscored 35 victims of political killings; 26, of enforced or involuntary disappearance; 8, of abduction; 29, of torture; 129, of illegal arrest; 116, of illegal detention; 330, of threat, harassment and intimidation; 7,542, of forcible evacuation or displacement, 3,600, of “hamletting”, interalia. As only solution, it petitioned the resignation of Mrs. Arroyo. (with 356 left-wing activists murdered). The Philippines armed forces battled the Communists since 1969, with about 40,000 victims killed, and it had to ward off killings by Muslim radicals. However, Justice Undersecretary Ricardo Blancaflor, head of Task Force on Political Violence contradicted Karapatan's submission only on the number of killings. PNP's Task Force Usig, according to Blancaflor noted only 141 cases, of which, only 114 are party list members or leftist activists.
- On December 13, 2007, Philippine Human Rights Commissioner Dominador Calamba III, at the Philippine Working Group for an Asean Human Rights Mechanism forum denounced the failure of the government in its treaty reporting to the United NationsUnited NationsThe United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
, due to "13 reports overdue." (reports due on implementation of international covenants signed by the Philippines to solve discrimination, forced disappearances and extrajudicial killings). Calamba reported 383 killings filed with the CHR, of which 145 were extrajudicial or political in form.
- On January 1, 2008, the National Union of JournalistsNational Union of JournalistsThe National Union of Journalists is a trade union for journalists in the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland. It was founded in 1907 and has 38,000 members. It is a member of the International Federation of Journalists .-Structure:...
(NUJ) paid tribute to 171 journalists killed in 2007. Citing data published by International Federation of JournalistsInternational Federation of JournalistsInternational Federation of Journalists, IFJ, is a global union federation of journalists' trade unions—the largest in the world. The organization aims to protect and strengthen the rights and freedoms of journalists...
: IraqIraqIraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
was number one, with 65 deaths; in the PhilippinesPhilippinesThe Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
, 6 journalists killed on 2007 were Hernani Pastolero (Sultan Kudarat), Carmelito Palacios (Nueva Ecija), Dodie Nunez (Cavite), Geruncio "Oscar" Mondejar (Mandaue), Vicente Sumalpong (Tawi-Tawi) and Fernando "Batman" Lintuan (Davao City); 54 journalists were murdered under the administration of President Gloria Macapagal-ArroyoGloria Macapagal-ArroyoGloria Macapagal-Arroyo is a Filipino politician who served as the 14th President of the Philippines from 2001 to 2010, as the 12th Vice President of the Philippines from 1998 to 2001, and is currently a member of the House of Representatives representing the 2nd District of Pampanga...
. In 2006, INSI stated that the Philippines was the 2nd most dangerous country for journalists, next to Iraq, listing 15 work-related journalists murdered. On January 4, 2008, the International Federation of JournalistsInternational Federation of JournalistsInternational Federation of Journalists, IFJ, is a global union federation of journalists' trade unions—the largest in the world. The organization aims to protect and strengthen the rights and freedoms of journalists...
(IFJ) Asia-Pacific director Jacqueline Park denounced the murders of broadcasters Fernando Lintuan in Davao CityDavao CityThe City of Davao is the largest city in the island of Mindanao in the Philippines. Its international airport and seaports are among the busiest cargo hubs in the Philippines....
and former journalist Romelito Oval, Jr. It petitioned the Philippine government to fully investigate 2007 journalists' killings: "5 journalists as well as Oval were killed in the Philippines in 2007, which is shocking and reveals the extreme dangers that journalists face every day in trying to carry out their work. There will be no press freedom in the Philippines until this (situation) changes."
- On January 4, 2008, AnakpawisAnakpawisAnakpawis is a party-list in the Philippines. The party-list is the electoral wing of the radical trade union movement Kilusang Mayo Uno.In the 2004 elections for the House of Representatives the party-list obtained 538,396 votes and two seats...
Rep. Crispin BeltranCrispin BeltranCrispin 'Ka Bel' Beltran was a Filipino politician and a labor leader. A staunch critic of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, his imprisonment in 2006 and 2007 on disputed charges of rebellion and sedition drew international attention...
filed House Resolution 299 with the House of Representatives of the PhilippinesHouse of Representatives of the PhilippinesThe House of Representatives of the Philippines is the lower chamber of the...
to investigate the murders and harassment of trade union / labor leaders in the Philippines. He cited the 2007 annual Survey of Trade Union Rights Violations of the International Trade Union ConfederationInternational Trade Union ConfederationThe International Trade Union Confederation is the world's largest trade union federation. It was formed on November 1, 2006 out of the merger of the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions and the World Confederation of Labour...
: "33 of the total 144 cases of trade union killings worldwide happened in the Philippines; and 800 cases of beatings and torture of trade unionists in the country."
- On January 9, 2008, PNP Task Force Usig announced that 3 policemen, 11 soldiers and 3 militiamen had been arrested or named suspects in killings of media men and militants since 2001. Director Jefferson P. Soriano submitted the report with the 17 names to PNP chief Avelino Razon. As of December 10, TF Usig prosecuted 113 killings cases of party-list members, leftist activists and 27 journalists.
- Twin horrible deaths happened on / circa the same day last year, January 15, 2007, that the Supreme Court of the PhilippinesSupreme Court of the PhilippinesThe Supreme Court of the Philippines is the Philippines' highest judicial court, as well as the court of last resort. The court consists of 14 Associate Justices and 1 Chief Justice...
' (logoLogoA logo is a graphic mark or emblem commonly used by commercial enterprises, organizations and even individuals to aid and promote instant public recognition...
or sealSeal (device)A seal can be a figure impressed in wax, clay, or some other medium, or embossed on paper, with the purpose of authenticating a document ; but the term can also mean the device for making such impressions, being essentially a mould with the mirror image of the design carved in sunken- relief or...
) was mysteriously burned into halves by an almost one hour afternoon fireFireFire is the rapid oxidation of a material in the chemical process of combustion, releasing heat, light, and various reaction products. Slower oxidative processes like rusting or digestion are not included by this definition....
. Despite different appeals by local and international groups, the spate of extrajudicial killings in the Philippines continued. On January 15, 2008, Reynato PunoReynato PunoReynato Puno y Serrano was the 22nd Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the Philippines. Appointed on December 8, 2006 by President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, he was the 22nd person to serve as Chief Justice...
condemned the murderMurderMurder is the unlawful killing, with malice aforethought, of another human being, and generally this state of mind distinguishes murder from other forms of unlawful homicide...
of Judge Roberto Navidad, Regional Trial Court, Branch 32, Calbayog CityCalbayog CityCalbayog City is a first class city in the province of Samar, Philippines. It lies along the coastal region of the province stretching about from the northern tip of the island and from southern boundaries...
, SamarSamarSamar, formerly and also known as Western Samar, is a province in the Philippines located in the Eastern Visayas region. Its capital is Catbalogan City and covers the western portion of Samar as well as several islands in the Samar Sea located to the west of the mainland...
, the 15th judge to be ambushed since July 20, 1999, the 14th under the Arroyo government. Just starting his engine, black Nissan PatrolNissan PatrolThe Nissan Patrol is a four-wheel drive vehicle manufactured by Nissan in Japan since 1951. In Japan since 1980, it has been known as the Nissan Safari. The Patrol is available in Australasia, Central and South America, South Africa, parts of Southeast Asia and Western Europe as well as Iran and...
SUV ( TPL-911), Natividad was shot in the face / left eye, at 7:10 p.m. Monday, by a lone gunman, 5’4" tall and medium-built, wearing black jacket, using a 45 caliber pistolPistolWhen distinguished as a subset of handguns, a pistol is a handgun with a chamber that is integral with the barrel, as opposed to a revolver, wherein the chamber is separate from the barrel as a revolving cylinder. Typically, pistols have an effective range of about 100 feet.-History:The pistol...
. On Tuesday, CatholicCatholicThe word catholic comes from the Greek phrase , meaning "on the whole," "according to the whole" or "in general", and is a combination of the Greek words meaning "about" and meaning "whole"...
missionaryMissionaryA missionary is a member of a religious group sent into an area to do evangelism or ministries of service, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care and economic development. The word "mission" originates from 1598 when the Jesuits sent members abroad, derived from the Latin...
Rey Roda, Oblates of Marry Immaculate (OMI), 54, was shot dead at 8:30 p.m., when he resisted abduction attempt by unidentified 10 armed men in a chapel at ikud Tabawan village, South Ubian, Tawi-TawiTawi-TawiTawi-Tawi is an island province of the Philippines located in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao . The capital of Tawi-Tawi is Bongao. The province is the southernmost of the country sharing sea borders with the Malaysian State of Sabah and the Indonesian East Kalimantan province. To the...
, South Ubian. In February 1997, another OMI leader, Bishop Benjamin de Jesus was shot dead in front of the JoloJoloJolo may refer to:* Jolo Island* Jolo, Sulu* Jolo, West Virginia* Jolo is also the nickname of Swedish author Jan Olof Olsson....
cathedralCathedralA cathedral is a Christian church that contains the seat of a bishop...
. In 2006, the Asian Human Rights CommissionAsian Human Rights CommissionThe Asian Human Rights Commission is an independent, non-governmental body, which seeks to promote greater awareness and realisation of human rights in the Asian region, and to mobilise Asian and international public opinion to obtain relief and redress for the victims of human rights violations...
stated that there had been 26 priests, pastors, and churchmen who were liquidate or were victims of violence under the Gloria Macapagal-ArroyoGloria Macapagal-ArroyoGloria Macapagal-Arroyo is a Filipino politician who served as the 14th President of the Philippines from 2001 to 2010, as the 12th Vice President of the Philippines from 1998 to 2001, and is currently a member of the House of Representatives representing the 2nd District of Pampanga...
administration since 2001. This includes 3 priests who were reported killed just in 2007: Basilio Bautista of the Iglesia Filipina Reform Group, in Surigao del SurSurigao del Sur' is a province of the Philippines located in the CARAGA region in Mindanao. Its capital is Tandag City and borders Surigao del Norte to the north, Agusan del Norte and Agusan del Sur to the west, and Davao Oriental to the south...
, Indonesian priest Fransiskus Madhu, in Kalinga province, and Catholic priest Florante Rigonan, in Ilocos NorteIlocos NorteIlocos Norte is a province of the Philippines located in the Ilocos Region in Luzon. Its capital is Laoag City and is located at the northwest corner of Luzon Island, bordering Cagayan and Apayao to the east, and Abra and Ilocos Sur to the south...
. On January 19, 2008, the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (quoting from a letter of VaticanHoly SeeThe Holy See is the episcopal jurisdiction of the Catholic Church in Rome, in which its Bishop is commonly known as the Pope. It is the preeminent episcopal see of the Catholic Church, forming the central government of the Church. As such, diplomatically, and in other spheres the Holy See acts and...
Secretary of StateSecretary of StateSecretary of State or State Secretary is a commonly used title for a senior or mid-level post in governments around the world. The role varies between countries, and in some cases there are multiple Secretaries of State in the Government....
Cardinal Tarciso Bertone), announced that Pope Benedict XVI "praised the courage of, and was saddened over the brutal and tragic killing of Fr. Reynaldo Roda in his ministry as head of Notre Dame School." The Pope wrote JoloJoloJolo may refer to:* Jolo Island* Jolo, Sulu* Jolo, West Virginia* Jolo is also the nickname of Swedish author Jan Olof Olsson....
Bishop Angelito Lampon: "calls upon the perpetrators to renounce the ways of violence and to play their part in building a just and peaceful society, where all can live together in harmony."
- On January 16, 2008, the New York-based international democracy watchdog Freedom HouseFreedom HouseFreedom House is an international non-governmental organization based in Washington, D.C. that conducts research and advocacy on democracy, political freedom and human rights...
dropped or relegated the "freedom status" of the Philippines to partially free from a list of totally free countries. It based its Philippine status downgrade on the spate of political killings, "specifically targeting left-wing political activists in the country, freedom in the sloped downward."
- On January 18, 2008, the Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas (KMP), led by KMP chairman Rafael "Ka Paeng" Mariano (president of the AnakpawisAnakpawisAnakpawis is a party-list in the Philippines. The party-list is the electoral wing of the radical trade union movement Kilusang Mayo Uno.In the 2004 elections for the House of Representatives the party-list obtained 538,396 votes and two seats...
), condemned the January 12 kidnapping and January 16 extrajudicial killing and tortureTortureTorture is the act of inflicting severe pain as a means of punishment, revenge, forcing information or a confession, or simply as an act of cruelty. Throughout history, torture has often been used as a method of political re-education, interrogation, punishment, and coercion...
of their farmer and local leader Teldo Rebamonte, 45, Masbate People’s Organization (who was supposed to join the commemoration of the Mendiola Massacre) in Barangay Nabasagan, Concepcion in Claveria, Burias Island, MasbateMasbateMasbate is an island province of the Philippines located in the Bicol Region. Its capital is Masbate City and consists of three major islands: Masbate, Ticao and Burias.-History:...
.
- On January 23, KarapatanKarapatanKarapatan, which translates as rights, is a human rights non-governmental organization in the Philippines. The full name of the group is KARAPATAN: Alliance for the Advancement of People's Rights.-History:...
announced that the 2 latest victim of extrajudicial killings were: Tildo Rebamonte, 45, a ClaveriaClaveriaClaveria is the name of three municipalities in the Philippines named after Narciso Clavería, the Spanish Governor-General of the country from 1844 to 1849.*Claveria, Cagayan*Claveria, Masbate*Claveria, Misamis Oriental...
, MasbateMasbateMasbate is an island province of the Philippines located in the Bicol Region. Its capital is Masbate City and consists of three major islands: Masbate, Ticao and Burias.-History:...
carpenterCarpenterA carpenter is a skilled craftsperson who works with timber to construct, install and maintain buildings, furniture, and other objects. The work, known as carpentry, may involve manual labor and work outdoors....
, who was gunned down on January 16, 4 days after he was allegedly kidnapped by the Philippine National PolicePhilippine National PoliceThe Philippine National Police is the national police force of the Republic of the Philippines. It is both a national and a local police force in that it does provides all law enforcement services throughout the Philippines...
’s Regional Mobile Group; and ex-political prisoner Ronald Sendrijas, 35, who was shot dead in Tagbilaran CityTagbilaran CityTagbilaran City is a 2nd class component city in the island province of Bohol, Philippines and serves as its capital. Tagbilaran lies on the southwestern part of the province, and has a total land area of 32.7 km², with about 13 km of coastline...
, BoholBoholBohol is an island province of the Philippines located in the Central Visayas region, consisting of Bohol Island and 75 minor surrounding islands. Its capital is Tagbilaran City. With a land area of and a coastline long, Bohol is the tenth largest island of the Philippines...
on January 17.
- On January 23, 2008, (or in just 9 days after the murder of a priest) Pastor Felicisimo Catambis, 60, of the United Church of Christ in the Philippines (UCCP) in Catugan, Barangay (village) Balucawe, LeyteLeyteLeyte is a province of the Philippines located in the Eastern Visayas region. Its capital is Tacloban City and occupies the northern three-quarters of the Leyte Island. Leyte is located west of Samar Island, north of Southern Leyte and south of Biliran...
town was shot dead by a still unknown assailant.
- On March 14, 2008, FilipinoFilipino peopleThe Filipino people or Filipinos are an Austronesian ethnic group native to the islands of the Philippines. There are about 92 million Filipinos in the Philippines, and about 11 million living outside the Philippines ....
lawyer Edre Olalia (lead officer of the National Union of Peoples’ Lawyers and the Counsels for the Defense of Liberties) brought the Philippine case and appealed to the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC), in its 7th GenevaGenevaGeneva In the national languages of Switzerland the city is known as Genf , Ginevra and Genevra is the second-most-populous city in Switzerland and is the most populous city of Romandie, the French-speaking part of Switzerland...
session "to stop the extrajudicial killings and abductions in the Philippines". Philippines killings will be examined in the first UNHRC session, periodic review from April 7 to 18, along with those in 15 others of 192 member-countries.
- Deepak Obhrai, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Foreign Affairs, in a statement at Canada's House of Commons, commended "the laudable role of the Supreme Court in the preservation of human rights and in the pursuit of justice." Canadian Ambassador Robert Desjanis sent the document to Chief Justice Reynato PunoReynato PunoReynato Puno y Serrano was the 22nd Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the Philippines. Appointed on December 8, 2006 by President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, he was the 22nd person to serve as Chief Justice...
"to underline the value that the government of Canada attaches to your efforts in this regard as well as to our continued collaboration in the Justice Reform Initiatives Support Project."
- In the March, 2008 US Department of State, 2007 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices, the US found that extrajudicial and political killings, including those of journalists, by members of the military, police, Communist rebels and other terrorist groups / perpetrators continue to be a major problem in the Philippines. The report added that “despite intensified efforts by the Philippine government to investigate and prosecute these cases, many went unsolved and unpunished.”
- The delegates to the 6th Congress of the National Union of JournalistsNational Union of JournalistsThe National Union of Journalists is a trade union for journalists in the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland. It was founded in 1907 and has 38,000 members. It is a member of the International Federation of Journalists .-Structure:...
of the Philippines (NUJP), led by chairman Jose Torres Jr. renewed calls to an end to unabated media killing. It reported that the list of journalistJournalistA journalist collects and distributes news and other information. A journalist's work is referred to as journalism.A reporter is a type of journalist who researchs, writes, and reports on information to be presented in mass media, including print media , electronic media , and digital media A...
s murdered swelled from 60 in 2001 to 96 in 2008. The most recent victims were gunned down local radio broadcasters of Radio Mindanao NetworkRadio Mindanao NetworkRMN is the largest radio network in the Philippines with almost 60 company-owned AM & FM radio stations located around the Philippines. Radio Mindanao Network remains the legal name of the radio network, while Radyo Mo Nationwide is the slogan of the network. The network's first radio station was...
, Dennis Cuesta from General Santos CityGeneral Santos CityThe City of General Santos is the southernmost port city of the Philippines. Being a highly urbanized first class city, GenSan is one of the most populous urban centers in the country with a population of 679,588 as per census data of 2010...
, and Martin Roxas of Roxas CityRoxas CityRoxas City is a medium-sized city in the province of Capiz, Philippines. It is the provincial capital and a component city. , the city mayor is former city vice mayor Angel Alan Celino who was elected during the 2010 election....
, CapizCapizCapiz is a province of the Philippines located in the Western Visayas region. Its capital is Roxas City and is located at the northeastern portion of Panay Island, bordering Aklan and Antique to the west, and Iloilo to the south. Capiz faces the Sibuyan Sea to the north...
. The NUJP declared August 20, a "National Day of Mourning" as journalists wore blackBlackBlack is the color of objects that do not emit or reflect light in any part of the visible spectrum; they absorb all such frequencies of light...
in protest, as they paid tribute to slain media practitioners at the Bantayog ng mga Bayani in Quezon CityQuezon CityQuezon City is the former capital and the most populous city in the Philippines. Located on the island of Luzon, Quezon City is one of the cities and municipalities that make up Metro Manila, the National Capital Region. The city was named after Manuel L...
.
See also
- Corruption in the PhilippinesCorruption in the PhilippinesThe Republic of the Philippines suffers from widespread corruption. Means of corruption include graft, bribery, embezzlement, backdoor deals, nepotism, patronage.- Corruption levels :...
- Marlene Garcia-EsperatMarlene Garcia-EsperatMarlene Garcia-Esperat was a Filipina whistleblower and investigative journalist who wrote a weekly anti-graft column for local newspapers. As a result of her anti-corruption work, she was murdered in her own home...
- Davao death squadsDavao death squadsThe Davao Death Squads or DDS, are a vigilante group active in Davao City in the Philippines. The group is allegedly responsible for summary executions of delinquents and drug traffickers in Davao...
General:
- Arbitrary arrest and detentionArbitrary arrest and detentionArbitrary arrest and arbitrary detention are the arrest or detention of an individual in a case in which there is no likelihood or evidence that they committed a crime against legal statute, or in which there has been no proper due process of law...
- Summary executionSummary executionA summary execution is a variety of execution in which a person is killed on the spot without trial or after a show trial. Summary executions have been practiced by the police, military, and paramilitary organizations and are associated with guerrilla warfare, counter-insurgency, terrorism, and...
- Selective assassination
- Summary justiceSummary justiceSummary justice refers to the trial and punishment of suspected offenders without recourse to a more formal and protracted trial under the legal system...
Monitoring organizations
- icaed.org, International campaign for UN Convention to protect all persons from enforced disappearance
- Desaparecidos.org www.desaparecidos.org (in English & Spanish)
- "The Commissar Vanishes" — Nikolai YezhovNikolai YezhovNikolai Ivanovich Yezhov or Ezhov was a senior figure in the NKVD under Joseph Stalin during the period of the Great Purge. His reign is sometimes known as the "Yezhovshchina" , "the Yezhov era", a term that began to be used during the de-Stalinization campaign of the 1950s...
airbrushAirbrushAn airbrush is a small, air-operated tool that sprays various media including ink and dye, but most often paint by a process of nebulization. Spray guns developed from the airbrush and are still considered a type of airbrush.-History:...
ed out of a picture with Stalin; - www.ic-mp.org,The International Commission on Missing Persons
- www2.ohchr.org, Official Website
- news.bbc.co.uk, BBC News Special on Special Rapporteurs
- Amnesty InternationalAmnesty InternationalAmnesty International is an international non-governmental organisation whose stated mission is "to conduct research and generate action to prevent and end grave abuses of human rights, and to demand justice for those whose rights have been violated."Following a publication of Peter Benenson's...
- Human Rights WatchHuman Rights WatchHuman Rights Watch is an international non-governmental organization that conducts research and advocacy on human rights. Its headquarters are in New York City and it has offices in Berlin, Beirut, Brussels, Chicago, Geneva, Johannesburg, London, Los Angeles, Moscow, Paris, San Francisco, Tokyo,...
- www.gmanews.tv, List of 15 JUDGES KILLED SINCE 1999
- www.manilatimes.net, Manila Times List of 15 JUDGES KILLED SINCE 1999
- I-TEAM REPORT - ‘Political killings not official but an unintended policy’
- supremecourt.gov.ph, National Summit on Extra Judicial Killings
- omct.org, World Organization Against Torture
- List of Issues arising from the Initial-Fourth Periodic Report of the Philippines to the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights Philippines
- extrajudicialexecutions.org/ extrajudicialexecutions.org, Philippines: Editorial on the Davao Death Squad and Killing of Journalists
- Philip Alston, UN Special Rapporteur on Extrajudicial, Summary or Arbitrary Executions
- extrajudicialexecutions.org, About the Special Rapporteur on Extrajudicial Executions
- newsbreak.com.ph/index, Karapatan's 2007 Year-end Report on the HR Situation
- extrajudicialexecutions.org, Special Rapporteur’s report on the Philippines
- stopthekillings.org, Dangerous, Regime, Defiant People - KARAPATAN 2007 Human Rights Report
- stopthekillings.org, KARAPATAN 2007 Human Rights Report
- List of Extrajudicial Killings as of April 25, 2006, Karapatan Documentation Committee
- List of Extrajudicial Killings as of April 25, 2006, Karapatan Documentation Committee
- pnp.gov.ph, REBUTTALS TO ALLEGATIONS MADE BY WITNESSES DURING THE U.S. SENATE SUB-COMMITTEE ON EAST ASIAN AND PACIFIC AFFAIRS‛“HEARING ON VIOLENCE RELATED TO EXTRA-JUDICIAL KILLINGS IN THE PHILIPPINES” HELD ON 14 MARCH 2007
- US Department of State, Philippines, International Religious Freedom Report 2007, Released by the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor
- 2007 International Religious Freedom Report
- US Department of State, Philippines, Country Reports on Human Rights Practices - 2007, Released by the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor March 11, 2008
- Journalists condemn unsolved media killings, May 3, 2008
- RP, others top 'Impunity Index' for slain journalists, May 3, 2008