Group welcomes report of ‘dirty war’ in Philippines

MANILA — The Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (Bayan) welcomed the report of the Human Rights Watch on the Philippines. The New-York based organization said, “The only real indication of the government’s commitment to end these killings will be when the perpetrators are finally held to account in a court of law.”

Bayan chair Dr. Carol Araullo said, “The recommendations of Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, the UN Special Rapporteur on Extrajudicial Killings and even the Malacanang-created Melo Commission all pointing to state agents as perpetrators have not been substantially acted upon. While Mrs. Arroyo condemns the killings, she has not lifted a finger to punish the perpetrators.”

Araullo said, Malacanang’s unfazed response to newspaper reports that three military generals have implicated the government in the summary executions is once more that of denial. AFP Chief Hermogenes Esperon attempts to skirt the issue by hiding behind the sheer legal technicality that government cannot respond to what it considers unsubstantiated charges from unidentified sources.”

Araullo further said, “Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita and Esperon’s definition of command responsibility as ‘applicable only to military officers who are two ranks higher than their subordinates who committed the crime’ is another poor attempt to clear the Commander-in-chief and the AFP high command of any responsibility.”

Araullo asked, “Do Mrs. Arroyo’s henchmen want us to believe that she is helpless in digging deeper into the damaging allegations? If the three generals’ expose is true and Mrs. Arroyo is not aware it happened, then the Commander-in-chief is not in command. If true and Mrs. Arroyo has full knowledge, then she is directly responsible for the extrajudicial killings and other grave human rights violations.”

The Bayan leader said, “Killings, abductions, torture of civilians are part and parcel of the Arroyo government’s counter-insurgency campaign Oplan Bantay Laya. The implementation of the Human Security Act, more aptly called terror law, will further intensify violations on human rights. All of these are sanctioned by Mrs. Arroyo.” #

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