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Friday, February 10, 2006
Solons meet US Marines accused of rape; press for custody
MANILA -- Lawmakers met four US Marines accused of rape at the US Embassy in the capital Thursday and reiterated a government request for their custody.
Senator Miriam Defensor Santiago said the lawmakers met with US Embassy officials led by Charge d'affaires Paul Jones.
"I told Paul Jones that Philippine jails are good enough for Filipinos, so why should there be better and different ones for foreigners," Santiago told a news conference.
Prosecutors allege that one of the Marines, Lance Corporal Daniel Smith, raped a 22-year-old woman Nov. 1 inside a van at Subic Bay, a former US Naval base northwest of Manila, as fellow Marines cheered him on. Smith claims he only had consensual sex.
Washington rejected Manila's request for their custody invoking the 1999 Visiting Forces Agreement, an accord allowing large-scale US military exercises in the country. It also allows American authorities to detain US suspects during legal proceedings.
US Embassy spokesman Matthew Lussenhop said American officials invited the Filipino lawmakers to meet the Marines and discuss the Visiting Forces Agreement.
Representative Antonio Cuenco said the US officials told the delegation they were open to continuing to negotiate the custody issue.
The four lawmakers are members of a congressional committee that last month approved a resolution calling on the government to abrogate the accord because US authorities refused to surrender the Marines.
The US decision not to turn them over has infuriated many in the former US colony.
The rape case is seen as a black mark on US military exercises that have been credited with helping weaken al-Qaida-linked militants in the southern Philippines.
The Marines were on liberty after counter terrorism maneuvers with Filipino troops when the alleged rape occurred. (AP/Sunnex)
(February 10, 2006 issue)
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