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Thursday, November 16, 2006
Wanted ex-senator Honasan captured
MANILA -- Former senator Gregorio Honasan, who is wanted in connection with the Oakwood mutiny three years ago and for the failed attempt to oust President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo from office last February, was arrested Wednesday dawn in a Quezon City subdivision.
The arrest made by operatives of the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) and the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) was welcomed by Malacañang, which described Honasan's capture as "another milestone that brings to a close a broad conspiracy to destabilize the government."
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A veteran of coup attempts in the 1980s, Honasan has been on the run since he was charged for the February plot, which prompted Arroyo to declare a weeklong state of national emergency.
He had evaded a nationwide manhunt for nine months, forcing the police to offer a P5 million bounty on his head.
Honasan was taken to Camp Crame after he tried to elude arrest by jumping over a fence after a brief house-to-house chase, Philippine National Police Chief Oscar Calderon told reporters.
Honasan, 58, was treated at a police hospital for injuries on his feet, Calderon said.
Wearing blue jeans and a black shirt, Honasan was seen in television footage being escorted in a wheelchair.
"There was resistance during the arrest, but when we already handcuffed him and he saw the futility of his resistance, he just followed us," said Senior Superintendent Asher Dolina.
Joint Army and police intelligence operatives spotted Honasan in Manila late Tuesday and tailed his vehicle to the exclusive Green Meadows subdivision in Quezon City.
Honasan is founding chairman of the rightist Rebolusyonaryong Alyansang Makabansa (RAM) and the Philippine Guardians Brotherhood Inc.
The Guardians called on its members to be calm in the light of Honasan's arrest while senators told the government to present clear and convincing evidence to back up the charges filed against the former senator.
After Honasan went into hiding early this year, police searched for him in Metro Manila, Sorsogon, Southern Luzon, Iloilo and Masbate Island.
Arrested along with Honasan at the Green Meadows townhouse owned by Ingrid Ramos was his driver, identified as Jaime Balanan, who police said will be charged with obstruction of justice, said Calderon in a press conference at Camp Crame.
Honasan suffered a deep laceration on the right foot when he jumped from the second floor of the townhouse as he tried to escape. He also sustained a slight fracture on the left foot.
At 4 p.m. Wednesday, Honasan was taken to the Asian Hospital in Alabang, Muntinlupa City.
The arrest warrant against Honasan stemmed from coup d'etat case in connection with the mutiny staged by the Magdalo Group, a group of more than 300 officers and men who laid siege on the Oakwood apartments in Makati City last July 27, 2003 to dramatize their protest against the corruption in government.
Authorities said Honasan instigated the renegade officers and men to rise up in arms against the government.
Honasan went into hiding in February after the Makati City Regional Trial Court issued the warrant against him.
Honasan's case has been consolidated with that of the Magdalo Group headed by Navy Lieutenants Senior Grade Antonio Trillanes and James Layug, Marine Captain Nicanor Faeldon and Gary Alejano and Army Captains Gerardo Gambala and Milo Maestrecampo.
Honasan is also facing charges before the Department of Justice (DOJ) in connection with the failed plan by renegade officers led by Brigadier General Danilo Lim to overthrow the Arroyo government last February.
CIDG Director Jesus Verzosa said a number of individuals coddled the former opposition senator while he was at large but he refused to identify them, saying "we still have no strong evidence to pin them down."
The military has a number of witnesses to prove the involvement of Honasan in the Oakwood mutiny, including one of the major participants who recently sided with government.
1st Lieutenant Lawrence San Juan, in a sworn statement, confirmed that he and other officers of the Magdalo Group met with Honasan before they mounted the mutiny.
Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita said they are hoping that Honasan's capture will thwart plans of other destabilizers to further weaken or even topple the government.
Asked if Honasan will be a force to reckon with if he pushes through with his plans to run in next year's elections, Ermita said he is because he is a former senator and has supporters.
At the Senate, legislators challenged the Arroyo administration to present clear and convincing evidence against Honasan.
Majority Leader Francis Pangilinan said the failure of the government to establish their accusations against the former senator will have an effect on the credibility of the government.
"Failure to present a strong case will bolster public perception that the administration is engaged in political harassment that will be difficult to overcome. The public deserves to know in full why Senator Honasan is a wanted man and what crime he has committed," Pangilinan said.
Senate Minority Leader Aquilino Pimentel Jr., for his part, defended Honasan by saying that the former senator has found himself in trouble with the law "not because of self-serving motives but because of his noble aspirations for the Filipino nation."
"Being arrested is part of the risks in the struggle for genuine freedom, justice, and peace. Those who believe in Greg's innocence must rally to his defense. I ask that he be treated fairly," Pimentel said.
Senator Rodolfo Biazon, on the other hand, said there is a need for the government to pursue a swift resolution on the Honasan case.
Biazon, a former military man like Honasan, said the former senator still has sympathizers in and out of the military.
In 1989, Honasan and his allies launched their deadliest coup attempt, occupying key points in the capital and even major airbases, and using captured aircraft to bomb the presidential palace.
Honasan's forces did not retreat until US jet fighters buzzed the city.
Honasan was given amnesty and later won a Senate seat when president Corazon Aquino stepped down and was replaced by former police general Fidel Ramos, who was also a key player in the 1986 revolt against the late president Ferdinand Marcos. (Sunnex)
For more Philippine news, visit Sun.Star Iloilo. (November 16, 2006 issue)
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