Sunday, March 04, 2007 Pimentel seeks probe of killings of activists
LAWYER Aquilino "Koko" Pimentel slammed the spat of extrajudicial killings and disappearances of student activists under the Arroyo administration that are reminiscent of similar gruesome crimes that took place during the Marcos dictatorship.
Pimentel, who is running for senator under the Genuine Opposition representing the youth, said the murdered youth leaders did not deserve the cruel fate that befell them since they committed no criminal offense but played the patriotic role of fighting social injustices and suppression of people's rights.
"Out of conviction and idealism, these student activists took the challenge of spearheading the protest movement inside and outside school campuses in the face of misrule and abuses by people in power, rampant graft and corruption and other venalities in society," the lone opposition senatorial bet from Mindanao said.
"To pursue their noble objective, they made a lot of sacrifices to the point of missing school classes. They were undaunted by the risks to their personal safety. It is unfortunate that they lost their lives and we strongly condemn these summary executions. We are outraged and saddened by these tragedies."
The latest student activists who was killed by a death squad was Farly Alcantara II, a 22-year-old graduating student of Camarines Norte State College in Daet, Alcantara, who was the spokesperson of the League of Filipino Students in Camarines Norte. He was gunned down by a lone assassin while he was on his way home from school.
"We suspect that these student activists were targeted for liquidation by their perpetrators to silence political dissent in school campuses and to scare away the studentry from joining street rallies and other protest actions organized by the youth organization, to draw public attention to the sad state of affairs in the country," Pimentel said.
He urged the Commission on Human Rights and Commission on Higher Education to conduct an exhaustive investigation of the series of slayings of student leaders, in order to unmask the killers and their masterminds and to render justice to the victims.
He called on the country's studentry to voice out their collective denunciation of the spate of extrajudicial killings of youth activists.
