Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders Annual Report 2005 - Philippines

Lack of investigation into several summary executions of defenders

While defenders continued to be the victims of extra-judicial executions in 2005, their perpetrators still escaped any kind of prosecution.

Summary execution of Ms. Eden Marcellana, Mr. Eddie Gumanoy, Mrs. Juvy Magsino and Mrs. Leima Fortu⁶²

By the end of 2005, the murderers of Ms. Eden Marcellana, secretary general of the Tagalog-South office of the Alliance for the Promotion of People's Rights (KARAPATAN), Mr. Eddie Gumanoy, president of the farmers organisation Kasama-TK, Mrs. Juvy Magsino, a lawyer specialised in human rights, president of Mindoro for Justice and Peace (MFJP) and Naujan deputy mayor (province of east Mindoro), and Mrs. Leima Fortu, a MFJP volunteer and deputy secretary general of KARAPATAN east Mindoro section, had still not been brought to justice, despite the express demand formulated by the United Nations Human Rights Committee in December 2003 concerning the murders of Mrs. Marcellana and Mr. Gumanoy. Some military officers under the orders of Colonel Jovito Palparan were suspected of being associated with these murders, but none of them had been arrested by the end of 2005. Nevertheless, the confirmation of the nomination of Colonel Jovito Palparan to the rank of Major General remained suspended, due to the strong opposition of human rights organisations.

Ms. Eden Marcellana and Mr. Eddie Gumanoy were murdered in 2003 and Mrs. Juvy Magsino and Mrs. Leima Fortu in February 2004.

Assassination of Mr. Rashid Manahan⁶³

By the end of 2005, no new information had come to explain the murder of Mr. Rashid Manahan, coordinator of the Movement for the Reestablishment of Justice (MTB-Davao), a network of human rights NGOs and bodies involved in the campaign for the abolition of the death penalty.

On 24 August 2004, Mr. Rashid Manahan was murdered in the suburb of Bajada, in Davao, while going to a forum against the death penalty and summary executions, organised by the University of the Philippines, in Mindanao.

Summary execution of Mr. Marcelino Beltran⁶⁴

By the end of 2005, the murder of Mr. Marcelino Beltran, president of the Peasants' Alliance in Tarlac Province (AMT), and vice-president of the Peasants' Alliance in Central Luzon (AMGL), remained unpunished, its perpetrators still not having been brought to justice.

On 8 December 2004, Mr. Marcelino Beltran was executed by military officers in front of his house in San Sotero, in Santa Ignacia (Tarlac), after participating in a peasants' strike at the Hacienda Luisita. He had witnessed the massacre of Hacienda Luisita, on 16 November 2004, in the course of which fourteen people had been killed and numerous others injured by the national police and soldiers of the 69th and 703rd infantry battalions.

Extra-judicial executions of several defenders⁶⁵

In 2005, several human rights activists, sometimes also involved in political parties, were killed by unknown persons:

– In the night of 28 February 2005, the body of Mr. Arnulfo Villanueva, a columnist at the Asian Star Express Balita (a community newspaper in Cavite), was found on a road in the city of Naic, Cavite. Mr. Arnulfo Villanueva had denounced the involvement of local officials in illegal gambling.

– Mr. Romeo Sanchez and Mr. Fedilito Dacut, regional coordinators of Bayan Muna, were respectively killed on 9 and 14 March 2005, in Baguio and Tacloban. Mr. Fedilito Dacut had protested, along with other defenders, against the nomination of Major General Jovito S. Palparan Jr. to the position of major general of the 8th infantry division in Eastern Visayas.

– On 24 March 2005, Mrs. Marlene Garcia-Esperat, a journalist involved in the struggle against corruption, in particular in the Mindanao region, was killed at her home in front of members of her family. Her husband had previously received death threats. Although four suspects were arrested, the persons behind the murder were not identified.

– On 4 May 2005, Mr. Klein Cantoneros, a presenter on the radio station DXAA-FM Dipolog City, well-known for his denunciations of the corruption of local officials, was shot dead. Mr. Cantoneros had previously received death threats.

– On 9 May 2005, Mr. Philip Agustin, editor and publisher of Starline Times Recorder (local community newspaper in Aurora), was shot in the head, in the village of Paltic, two days before the publication of a special edition of his newspaper dedicated to corruption in the city of Dingalen.

– On 12 May 2005, Reverend Edison Lapuz, a priest involved in the defence of human rights, and Mr. Alfredo Malinao, a peasant leader, were murdered at San Isidro, Leyte. Major General Palparan might have once again been involved in these murders.

– On 15 June 2005, Professor Castor Gamalo, president of the Federation of Teachers Association (FTA) of the Eastern Visayas State University (EVSU) and member of the Task Force Detainees of the Philippines (TFDP), was shot dead. FTA had been protesting since the day before against the decision of EVSU to remove Mr. Gamalo, as well as other teachers and students representatives, from their positions in EVSU administrative council, without any formal decision.

– On 13 September 2005, Mr. Leodegario Punzal, a member of the Pinagkaisang Samahan ng Tsuper at Operator Nationwide (PISTON), was killed in the city of Norzagaray, the day after the union launched a strike throughout the region.⁶⁶

– On 23 September 2005, Mr. Diosdado "Ka Fort" Fortuna, president of the Filipino Employees Union of the Unity of Workers in Southern Tagalog – May First Movement (PAMANTIK-KMU) and of the political party Anakpawis – south Tagalog section, was killed by two gunshots in the chest, while he was returning to his home on a motorbike.⁶⁷

– On 30 September 2005, Mrs. Victoria Samonte, vice-president of the Caraga section of KMU, president of the Andres Soriano College Employees Union, ACT-BISLIG president, president of the Drivers and Operators of Cumawas and Bliss Association (DOCUBA), secretary general of the Bislig City Alliance of Transport Association (BCATA) and president of the Castillo Bagong Lipunan Homeowners Association (CBLHA), was stabbed to death by a man who had sat behind her in the same rickshaw.⁶⁸

– On 25 October 2005, Mr. Ricardo Ramos, president of the Central Azucarera de Tarlac Labour Union (CATLU), was killed while he was in his garden, in Barangay Mapalacsiao, Tarlac, inside Hacienda Luisita. Five hours before, the union had received more than eight million Philippine pesos (more than 127,000 euros) from Hacienda Luisita Inc. in the framework of an agreement for overdue salaries.⁶⁹

– On 26 October 2005, Mr. Federico de Leon, spokesperson for the Bulacan Confederation of Operators and Drivers Association (BCODA), president of PISTON in Bulacan province and president of the Bucalan section of Anakpawis, was shot in the head, in the city of Malolos.⁷⁰

Assassination attempts against Mr. Allan Caparro, his wife, and Mr. Romeo T. Capulong⁷¹

– On 18 February 2005, Mr. Allan Caparro, a human rights defender, and his wife, Mrs. Aileen Caparro, were seriously wounded during an attempt on their lives. Mr. Allan Caparro contributed to the training of a union in Calbayog, Western Samar, for the protection of environment and against destructive activities, such as mining. He also denounced militarisation in the Northern and Western Samar, due to numerous human rights violations reported in the region.

– On 7 March 2005, Mr. Romeo T. Capulong, a lawyer involved in the defence of human rights and ad litem judge of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia, was attacked by 15 armed men in vehicles without number plates, suspected to be members of the army or paramilitary forces. Mr. Capulong had been the lawyer for striking workers of the Hacienda Luisita, following the strike of 16 November 2004.⁷²

Ill-treatment, judicial proceedings and arbitrary detention of Mrs. Angelina Bisuna Ipong⁷³

On 8 March 2005, Mrs. Angelina Bisuna Ipong, a peace activist, was arrested by members of the Philippine Army who blindfolded her. On 15 March 2005, informed that she would be interrogated, she realised, as soon as her blindfold was removed, that she had been brought into a room filled with journalists who photographed and questioned her. However, shocked, she was unable to speak. At the end of this "press conference", she was once again blindfolded and taken back to her cell. For thirteen days from the date of her arrest, Mrs. Ipong was not allowed to receive visits and refused to eat to protest against her arrest.

On 17 March 2005, the Major General of the South announced that Mrs. Ipong had been taken to Molave, Zamboanga del Sur. Nobody was able to see her before 21 March 2005, when a TFDP team went to the prison in the city of Pagadian to investigate her situation. TFDP then learnt that Mrs. Ipong had been charged with "rebellion", without any possibility of release on bail, according to Section 23 of the Molave Regional Court.

Mrs. Ipong was also reportedly subjected to sexual abuse, torture and inhuman treatments by members of the Philippine Army.

By the end of 2005, Mrs. Ipong remained in detention at the prison of the city of Pagadian. A hearing to consider the charges against her was scheduled for January 2006.

[Refworld note: This report as posted on the FIDH website (www.fidh.org) was in pdf format with country chapters run together by region. Footnote numbers have been retained here, so do not necessarily begin at 1.]

62. See Annual Report 2004.

63. Idem.

64. Idem.

65. See Open Letter to the Philippine authorities, 1 July 2005.

66. See Task Force Detainees of the Philippines (TFDP).

67. See Urgent Appeal PHL 001/1005/OBS 092.

68. Idem.

69. See Task Force Detainees of the Philippines (TFDP).

70. Idem.

71. See Open Letter to the Philippine authorities, 1 July 2005.

72. See above.

73. See Open Letter to the Philippine authorities, 1 July 2005.