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PHILIPPINES: Activist killed and an attempt made on another's life

March 20, 2006

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ASIAN HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION - URGENT APPEALS PROGRAMME

Urgent Appeal

20 March 2006
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UA-096-2006: PHILIPPINES: Activist killed and an attempt made on another’s life

PHILIPPINES: Extra-judicial execution of activist; inadequate police investigation; ineffective witness protection; collapse of rule of law
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Dear friends,

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) regrets to inform you that another human rights activist has been killed while another one has survived an attempt on her life in separate incidents on 10 March 2006 in Luzon, Philippines. Activist Crisanto Teodoro (a.k.a. Santi) was shot dead while driving in a car with his wife Lucila in Malolos, Bulacan while Elena Mendiola (a.k.a. Baby) was shot at by two men in front of her house in Echague, Isabela.

It was around 9pm when Teodoro was shot at while driving with his wife Lucila and colleagues. Lucila suffered injuries to her face after slamming into the car’s window following her car being rammed. Teodoro is one among 33 victims of summary execution since January this year, according to a report by Karapatan (Alliance for the Advancement of People’s Rights). The group added that Teodoro is also the 82nd member of party list Bayan Muna (People First) to be killed since 2001.

Meanwhile, Mendiola survived an attempt on her life when gunmen shooting at her missed. She was in front of her house at around 9:30am in Sillauan Sur, Echague, Isabela when the incident happened. She was able to run for cover behind a wall. The unidentified assailants shot at her three times. The gunmen were believed to have used a .45 caliber pistol when shooting the victim.

Mendiola is herself a leader of Bayan Muna in the province. She was a member of the United Opposition during the National Elections of 2003. She is also a member of the People's Alliance for Democracy, Justice and Good Governance and a popular defender of peasant rights in Echague, Isabela.

A week before the incident, another activist, Gina Ricardo of Bayan (Bagong Alyansang Makabayan) in Cagayan Valley Chapter was also harassed. It is reported that an unidentified man pointed a gun at her on March 3.

This is yet another incident of killing and violence of human rights activists in the Philippines. While these incidents are occurring unabated, the response by the concerned authority’s, in particular the Philippine National Police (PNP) and Department of Justice (DoJ) has been completely inadequate. In most cases the perpetrators have not been identified, arrested and prosecuted.

The AHRC has repeatedly raised serious concerns regarding these issues including in our open letter to Department of Justice Secretary Raul Gonzalez (AHRC-OL-002-2006) and to Ms Louise Arbour of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (AHRC-OL-08-2005). The ineffective implementation of the Witness Protection, Security and Benefit Act (RA 6981) is among the key factors in failing to address these cases. Most of these cases have either not been filed or have not shown progress in court due to the lack of witnesses. The non-prosecution of perpetrators creates a culture of impunity and violence.

SUGGESTED ACTION:
Please write letters to the relevant authorities listed below requesting for a thorough and impartial investigation into the killing of Crisanto Teodoro. The police investigators should exert all means to collect sufficient evidence and to identify the perpetrators and to effectively prosecute them. An inquiry must also commence into the attempt on Elena Mendiola’s life. Mendiola must also be afforded with appropriate protection to ensure her safety. Reports of threats and harassment instigated against other activists should also be investigated.


Suggested letter:


Dear __________,

PHILIPPINES: Activist killed and an attempt made on another’s life

Name of victim killed: Crisanto Teodoro (45), married and with children, a resident of Menzyland Subdivision, Malolos, Bulacan. He was the chairperson of Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (BAYAN)
Place of incident: Menzyland Subdivision, Malolos, Bulacan
Date and time of incident: 10 March 2006 at around 9pm
Name of victim who survived attempt: Elena Mendiola (a.k.a. Baby), a resident of Sillauan Sur, Echague, Isabela. She is the secretary General of Bayan Muna (People First) – Isabela Chapter
Place of incident: Echague, Isabela
Date and time of incident: 10 March 2006 at 9am

I am writing to draw your attention to the case of Crisanto Teodoro, a human rights activist who was killed in Malolos, Bulacan and another activist, Elena Mendiola, who survived an attempt on her life in Echague, Isabela in separate incidents on 10 March 2006.

According to the information I received, Teodoro was shot dead by gunmen riding on a motorcycle while he was driving in his car together with his wife Lucila and other colleagues. His wife Lucila suffered injuries to her face when the car they were riding rammed into a roadside following the shooting.

Meanwhile, Elena Mendiola survived an attempt on her life when gunmen riding on a motorcycle narrowly missed her in Echague, Isabela. Mendiola was in front of her house when the gunmen started shooting at her. She was able to run for cover behind a concrete wall.

I am deeply concerned by this, yet another incident of killing and violence against human rights activists in the Philippines. I have learned that the perpetrators of Teodoro’s killing and those who made an attempt on Mendiola’s life have not been identified. Although investigations have been conducted into these cases, they have not reached any conclusive findings to identify, arrest and effectively prosecute those responsible.

I am extremely disappointed by the manner in which the government, in particular the Philippine National Police (PNP) is handling these cases and in previous cases of extra-judicial execution involving human rights and political activists. Although the PNP and the Department of Justice (DoJ) is aware that effective implementation of the Witness Protection, Security and Benefit Act (RA 6981) is among the key factors in addressing these cases, it has not done enough to reach this objective.

The government’s inadequate action to address these unrestrained killings and the violence against activists is most disturbing. I therefore urge your intervention to ensure that all means of investigations are exhausted into Teodoro and Mendiola’s case. Any further investigation conducted must endeavour to establish who is responsible for these incidents and bring them to justice without delay. Teodoro’s family must be afforded with appropriate compensation while Mendiola must be provided adequate security to ensure her safety. The government must take a proactive role to ensure their citizen’s right to life is protected.

I trust that you will take immediate action in this case.

Yours sincerely,


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PLEASE SEND LETTERS TO:

1. Ms. Purificacion Quisumbing
Commissioner
Commission on Human Rights
SAAC Bldg., Commonwealth Avenue
U.P. Complex, Diliman
Quezon City
PHILIPPINES
Tel: +63 2 928 5655 / 926 6188
Fax: +63 2 929 0102
Email: drpvq@chr.gov.ph

2. P/DIR Gen. Arturo Lumibao
Chief, Philippine National Police (PNP)
Camp General Rafael Crame
Quezon City
PHILIPPINES
Tel: +63 2726 4361/4366/8763
Fax: +63 2724 8763

3. Mr. Raul Gonzalez
Secretary
Department of Justice
DOJ Bldg., Padre Faura
1004 Manila
PHILIPPINES
Fax: +63 2 521 1614
Email: sechbp@infocom.com.ph

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

5. Gen. Generoso Senga
Chief of Staff
Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP)
Armed Forces of the Philippines General Headquarters Offices (AFP-GHQ)
Camp General Emilio Aguinaldo
Quezon City
PHILIPPINES

6. Mr. Philip Alston
Special Rapporteur on Extra-judicial, Summary, or Arbitrary Executions
Atten: Lydie Ventre
Room 3-016, c/o OHCHR-UNOG
1211 Geneva 10
SWITZERLAND
Tel: +41 22 917 9155
Fax: +41 22 917 9006 (general)
Email: lventre@ohchr.org

7. Ms. Yakin Erturk
Special Rapporteur on Violence against Women
c/o Ms Vernonica Birga
Room 3-042
c/o OHCHR-UNOG
1211 Geneva 10
SWITZERLAND
Tel: +41 22 917 9615
Fax: +41 22 917 9006 (ATTN: SPECIAL RAPPORTEUR VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN)
Email: vbirga@ohchr.org  (please also cc: rrico@ohchr.org)

 

Thank you.

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

Document Type :
Urgent Appeal Case
Document ID :
UA-096-2006
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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.