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PHILIPPINES: An army sergeant has the obligation to disclose the identities of the soldiers who assaulted a man

October 3, 2008

ASIAN HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION – URGENT APPEALS PROGRAMME

Urgent Appeal Case: AHRC-UAC-219-2008

3 October 2008
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PHILIPPINES: An army sergeant has the obligation to disclose the identities of the soldiers who assaulted a man

ISSUES: Torture; torture victims; right to liberty and security
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Dear friends,

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) writes to inform you that the soldiers responsible for illegally arresting and assaulting a man have remained free. They have not been held accountable because a sergeant, knowing their identities, failed to take action in naming the soldiers' involved.

CASE DETAILS: (According to information from the Task Force Detainees of the Philippines (TFDP))

Sometime in the morning of April 2008, the victim Pablito Suplido was with his friend, Sergeant Tanega in Sitio (sub-section of a village) Udlian, Barangay (village) San Marcelino, General Nakar, Quezon province. They were engaged in conversation when Sergeant Tanega asked Pablito to buy some liquor at a nearby store. As Pablito was walking towards the store about 20 soldiers in military uniform accosted him.

The soldiers, all attached to the 16th Infantry Battalion(IB), Alpha Company of the Philippine Army (PA), were not wearing identity badges and were carrying M14 rifles and machine guns.
 
One of the soldiers grabbed the bolo Pablito was carrying. He tied both hands behind his back using the belt of the bolo holder. Another soldier told him to sit down on the sidewalk. While he was sitting down, two other soldiers simultaneously kicked him in the chest. Another soldier, who was holding his bolo, pointed it at the back of his neck. Pablito was aware of the other soldiers pointing their guns at his back.
 
One of the soldiers informed Pablito that one of their Civilian Auxiliary Force Geographical Unit (CAFGU) members, who was with them at the time, claimed Pablito kept a firearm in his house. Though Pablito could not identify the name of the CAFGU man he recognized his face. The soldiers then forced him to surrender the gun he was supposedly keeping. They then accused him of being a supporter of an illegal armed group, the New Peoples Army (NPA).

In denying the soldiers' allegations against him, Pablito told them that he knew Sergeant Tanega and that it was the latter who had requested him to buy wine. The soldiers warned him that if he was lying they would cut his head off and drink his blood.
 
The soldiers then contacted Sergeant Tanega through the Citizen's Band (CB) radio communication to verify the information they had obtained from Pablito. At the time of the transmission, Pablito overheard that Sergeant Tanega had scolded the soldier who contacted him telling him to immediately release the victim.

After the soldiers contacted Sergeant Tanega, Pablito was taken towards the seashore. The soldier holding the radio told him that they would only let him go on condition that he would not run as soon as they had untied his hands.
 
After the incident Pablito, who belongs to the indigenous tribe Agta, spoke with a local activist. He recounted that he has had nightmares ever since the incident took place. Since then, he feels nervous even at the barking of a dog and that his heart beat speeds up due to this nervousness.

Pablito has not been able to identify the soldiers responsible who briefly but illegally arrested and assaulted him. However, the army sergeant--Tanega, who is known to the victim, is said to know the identities of the soldiers. Furthermore, it has been learned that Sergeant Tanega took no action to assist Pablito in seeking legal remedies, nor did he personally appear in a discussion being called on the matter.
 
Although Pablito is willing to pursue a complaint, the lack of protection, the fear and the trauma he has experienced, negate the possibility of prosecuting the soldiers involved. Thus, it is necessary that Sergeant Tanega be required to cooperate in the police inquiry into this victim's case. The victim fears that once he lodges a complaint the soldiers might get back at him.

SUGGESTED ACTION:
Please write letters to the concerned authorities listed below, in particular the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP). Request that they ensure that the sergeant who knows the identities of the soldiers involved cooperate in the police investigation. The victim should also be afforded adequate protection during the pursuit of the case; and that he should likewise be afforded adequate treatment and rehabilitation for the trauma he continues to suffer.

The AHRC is also writing separate letters to the Special Rapporteur on the Question of Torture and Independent Expert on Minority Issues.

To support this appeal, please click here:

SAMPLE LETTER:

Dear __________,

PHILIPPINES: An army sergeant has the obligation to disclose  the identities of the soldiers who assaulted a man

Name of victim: Pablito Suplido in Sitio (sub-section of a village) Udlian, Barangay San Marcelino, General Nakar. He belongs to the indigenous tribe Agta.
Alleged perpetrators: More or less 20 soldiers in military uniform, all attached to the 16th IB, Alpha Company, Philippine Army (PA)
Date and time of incident: in April 2008

I am writing to draw your attention to the plight of Pablito Suplido, a farmer belonging to the indigenous tribe Agta, whom soldiers mentioned above, have illegally arrested and assaulted after taking him into custody sometime in April 2008.

Pablito was on his way to a store to buy liquor upon the request of his friend, Sergeant Tanega. As he walked towards the store, a group of soldiers, numbering about 20, suddenly accosted him. They and a civilian with them from the CAFGU had suspicions that he kept a firearm in his house, and that he was allegedly a supporter of an illegal armed group, the New People's Army (NPA).

When the victim denied having a firearm in his house and supporting an illegal armed group, the soldiers started kicking him in the chest, pointing the bladed Bolo weapon he was carrying at him. The soldiers also pointed their guns at his back. Only after Pablito had informed them that it was Sergeant Tanega who had instructed him to buy wine; and that he and the sergeant were friends that he was subsequently released from custody uponTanega's orders.

He was set free after the soldiers contacted the army sergeant who instructed them to release the victim. While I appreciate the sergeant's intervention in preventing the victim from being abused further, it is disappointing that he has not cooperated with the police authorities or the victim to disclose the names of the soldiers involved. The victim is, therefore, deprived of the possibility of pursuing legal remedies for the violations committed against him.

It is a sad indictment of Sergeant Tanega. He knew fully well the identities of the soldiers, in particular the radio operator whom he had spoken to while the victim was in custody. He failed or did not take adequate action to ensure that the soldiers would promptly be held to account. I therefore urge you to ensure that Sergeant Tanega cooperates in any inquiry into this matter; and assure the victim that he would not be subject to reprisal by the soldiers.

Also, I urge you to see to it that Pablito is afforded adequate assistance, in the particular treatment and counseling he requires. The concerned authorities must afford him this assistance without further delay.

Yours sincerely,

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PLEASE SEND YOUR LETTERS TO:

1. Mrs. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo
President
Republic of the Philippines
Malacanang Palace
JP Laurel Street, San Miguel
Manila 1005
PHILIPPINES
Fax: +63 2 736 1010
Tel: +63 2 735 6201 / 564 1451 to 80
E-mail: corres@op.gov.ph

2. Ms. Leila De Lima
Commissioner
Commission on Human Rights
SAAC Bldg., Commonwealth Avenue
U.P. Complex, Diliman
Quezon City
PHILIPPINES
Fax: +63 2 929 0102
Tel: +63 2 928 5655 / 926 6188
E-mail: chr.delima@yahoo.com or mtm_rodulfo@yahoo.com 

3. Deputy Director General Jesus A. Verzosa
Chief, Philippine National Police (PNP)
Camp General Rafael Crame
Quezon City
PHILIPPINES
Fax: +63 2724 8763
Tel: +63 2 726 4361/4366/8763
E-mail: bluetree73@gmail.com 

4. Mr. Raul Gonzalez
Secretary
Department of Justice (DoJ)
DOJ Bldg., Padre Faura
1004 Manila
PHILIPPINES
Fax: +63 2 521 1614
E-mail: agnesdeva@yahoo.com 

5. Lt. Gen.Alexander Yano
Chief of Staff
Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP)
AFP-GHQ Offices, Camp Gen. Emilio Aguinaldo
Quezon City
PHILIPPINES
Fax: +63 2 911 6436
Tel: +63 2 911 6001 to 50

Thank you.

Urgent Appeals Programme
Asian Human Rights Commission (ua@ahrchk.org)

Document Type :
Urgent Appeal Case
Document ID :
AHRC-UAC-219-2008
Countries :
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Extended Introduction: Urgent Appeals, theory and practice

A need for dialogue

Many people across Asia are frustrated by the widespread lack of respect for human rights in their countries.  Some may be unhappy about the limitations on the freedom of expression or restrictions on privacy, while some are affected by police brutality and military killings.  Many others are frustrated with the absence of rights on labour issues, the environment, gender and the like. 

Yet the expression of this frustration tends to stay firmly in the private sphere.  People complain among friends and family and within their social circles, but often on a low profile basis. This kind of public discourse is not usually an effective measure of the situation in a country because it is so hard to monitor. 

Though the media may cover the issues in a broad manner they rarely broadcast the private fears and anxieties of the average person.  And along with censorship – a common blight in Asia – there is also often a conscious attempt in the media to reflect a positive or at least sober mood at home, where expressions of domestic malcontent are discouraged as unfashionably unpatriotic. Talking about issues like torture is rarely encouraged in the public realm.

There may also be unwritten, possibly unconscious social taboos that stop the public reflection of private grievances.  Where authoritarian control is tight, sophisticated strategies are put into play by equally sophisticated media practices to keep complaints out of the public space, sometimes very subtly.  In other places an inner consensus is influenced by the privileged section of a society, which can control social expression of those less fortunate.  Moral and ethical qualms can also be an obstacle.

In this way, causes for complaint go unaddressed, un-discussed and unresolved and oppression in its many forms, self perpetuates.  For any action to arise out of private frustration, people need ways to get these issues into the public sphere.

Changing society

In the past bridging this gap was a formidable task; it relied on channels of public expression that required money and were therefore controlled by investors.  Printing presses were expensive, which blocked the gate to expression to anyone without money.  Except in times of revolution the media in Asia has tended to serve the well-off and sideline or misrepresent the poor.

Still, thanks to the IT revolution it is now possible to communicate with large audiences at little cost.  In this situation there is a real avenue for taking issues from private to public, regardless of the class or caste of the individual.

Practical action

The AHRC Urgent Appeals system was created to give a voice to those affected by human rights violations, and by doing so, to create a network of support and open avenues for action.  If X’s freedom of expression is denied, if Y is tortured by someone in power or if Z finds his or her labour rights abused, the incident can be swiftly and effectively broadcast and dealt with. The resulting solidarity can lead to action, resolution and change. And as more people understand their rights and follow suit, as the human rights consciousness grows, change happens faster. The Internet has become one of the human rights community’s most powerful tools.   

At the core of the Urgent Appeals Program is the recording of human rights violations at a grass roots level with objectivity, sympathy and competence. Our information is firstly gathered on the ground, close to the victim of the violation, and is then broadcast by a team of advocates, who can apply decades of experience in the field and a working knowledge of the international human rights arena. The flow of information – due to domestic restrictions – often goes from the source and out to the international community via our program, which then builds a pressure for action that steadily makes its way back to the source through his or her own government.   However these cases in bulk create a narrative – and this is most important aspect of our program. As noted by Sri Lankan human rights lawyer and director of the Asian Human Rights Commission, Basil Fernando:

"The urgent appeal introduces narrative as the driving force for social change. This idea was well expressed in the film Amistad, regarding the issue of slavery. The old man in the film, former president and lawyer, states that to resolve this historical problem it is very essential to know the narrative of the people. It was on this basis that a court case is conducted later. The AHRC establishes the narrative of human rights violations through the urgent appeals. If the narrative is right, the organisation will be doing all right."

Patterns start to emerge as violations are documented across the continent, allowing us to take a more authoritative, systemic response, and to pinpoint the systems within each country that are breaking down. This way we are able to discover and explain why and how violations take place, and how they can most effectively be addressed. On this path, larger audiences have opened up to us and become involved: international NGOs and think tanks, national human rights commissions and United Nations bodies.  The program and its coordinators have become a well-used tool for the international media and for human rights education programs. All this helps pave the way for radical reforms to improve, protect and to promote human rights in the region.