Tuesday, October 14, 2008 Charges vs retired general sought
THE United Opposition (UNO) on Monday challenged President Gloria Macapagal- Arroyo to file criminal charges and order the arrest of retired Army General Jovito Palparan after the Supreme Court (SC) affirmed his involvement in the abduction of two suspected New People's Army (NPA) rebels.
UNO president and Makati Mayor Jejomar Binay said the filing of charges and arrest would disprove allegations that the Arroyo administration sanctioned the wave of extrajudicial killings and disappearances of activists and government critics allegedly perpetuated by military death squads.
"The Arroyo administration must show its adherence to the constitutional provisions of protecting human rights and the rule of law. To keep silent on the matter would only confirm the sentiment of local and international human rights observers that her administration condones such practices," Binay said.
Palparan was once tagged by the communist group as "berdugo" (butcher) of their rank.
The SC has upheld the findings of the appellate court last week linking Palparan to the abduction of brothers Raymond and Reynaldo Manalo, both farmers in Bulacan Province who were taken under military custody for 18 months on suspicion of being NPA rebels until they escaped in August last year.
It found "convincing" one of the brothers' accounts of how they were tortured by their military captors.
Raymond said in his account that during their captivity in an Army camp in Limay, Bataan, he saw another detainee, Manuel Merino, being "set on fire" by their captors and that he later heard Merino's "screams or moans."
For his part, UNO spokesman Adel Tamano said even without waiting for President Arroyo's directive, Justice Secretary Raul Gonzalez Sr. should immediately file criminal charges against Palparan.
Tamano also suggested that a hold-departure order be issued on Palparan to prevent him from fleeing the country.
"To show this administration's adherence to the rule of law and respect for human rights, Secretary Gonzalez should file criminal charges against General Palparan and all military officers involved in the torture and abduction of the Manolo brothers," Tamano said.
Another opposition leader, San Juan Mayor Joseph Victor "JV" Ejercito, said the filing of criminal charges should not be limited to Palparan.
"Considering that majority of the victims of extrajudicial killings and disappearances were taken to military camps, the government should not single out only Palparan and investigate all military officers involved," Ejercito said.
"With the Supreme Court ruling, we hope that the majority members of the Armed Forces of the Philippines who remained committed to human rights and the rule of law would do something in giving justice to the so-called 'desaparecidos' of the Arroyo administration's extrajudicial killings," he added. (AH/Sunnex)
