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PHILIPPINES: The innocent civilians were arbitrary attested and assaulted by the soldiers

August 26, 2002

URGENT ACTION URGENT ACTION URGENT ACTION URGENT ACTION URGENT ACTION
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ASIAN HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION - URGENT APPEALS PROGRAM
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27 August 2002
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UA-37-2002: The innocent civilians were arbitrary attested and assaulted by the soldiers
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PHILIPPINES: Arbitrary arrest and assault by soldiers
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- Name of victims:
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1. Mr. Alex Colonia, 32, married, driver and a resident of Sitio Guinhabitan, Brgy. Bactas, Catmon, Cebu, Philippines
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2. Mr. Vicente Garo Jr., 21, single, unemployed and a resident of Duterte St., Brgy. Suba, Danao City, Philippines
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3. About 30 unidentified men who engage in buying and selling
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- Place of incident: Brgy. Pansoy, Sogod, Cebu, Philippines
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- Date of incident: Aug. 15, 2002
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- The alleged perpetrators: Members of the 78th infantry battalion of the Philippine army based in Sogod, Cebu, Philippines, under the command of Lt. Col. Jonas Sumagaysay
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CASE DETAILS
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On Aug. 15, 2002, the members of the New People's Army (NPA) ambushed a police team in Brgy. Pansoy, Sogod, Cebu, Philippines, injuring two policemen and one civilian. Immediately members of the 78th infantry battalion, under the command of Lt. Col. Jonas Sumagaysay, set up checkpoints in the area to block the fleeing rebels.
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Mr. Alex Colonia, one of the victims, claimed that he went to Brgy. Pansoy to fetch his mother-in-law because an SSS check had just arrived at the municipal hall and would not be released without her signature.
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On their way to Poblacion, they were warned that there was an ambush near their barangay and that it was not safe to leave the place where they lived because the soldiers were still looking for the rebels. They ignored their friend's warning though and even managed to hitch a ride on the vehicle of an acquaintance who was buying pigs in the Pansoy market.
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Upon arriving at the ambush site, they were stopped by a group of heavily armed soldiers who searched their vehicle without presenting a search warrant. Then one of the soldiers grabbed Colonia and punched him in the chest. The soldier also reportedly barked, &quot;You are a bully!&quot; and punched his stomach.
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All the passengers in their vehicle were made to face the wall of the cliff and raise their hands in the air. Colonia claimed that all the vehicles that passed that road that day were searched and their passengers had to undergo the same ordeal. They thought that they would be shot by the soldiers because some of them chambered their weapons and suddenly stamped their boots on the ground. Colinia said that he saw the same soldier punch and choke an unidentified man from Danao City.
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At 4:00 p.m., they were brought to the police station in Poblacion, Sogod, and were released two hours later. No charges were filed against them.
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Colonia estimates that about 30 people were forced to stand in the rain and raise their hands in the air while the soldiers checked their identification cards.
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Vicente Garo Jr., who was also physically assaulted by the soldiers, said that he accompanied his brother-in-law to Brgy. Pansoy since it was market day to purchase pigs and other livestock.
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He said that on their way home their vehicle was also stopped by a group of soldiers. One of them suddenly choked him and asked him about the location of the rebels' firearms. Garo almost fainted during the incident. The soldier then slapped him on the head and tackled him to the ground.
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They were also ordered to face the wall of the cliff while the soldiers checked their identification cards. A councilor of barangay Sogod reportedly arrived at the checkpoint and vouched for the identities of the other victims, who are residents of this municipality. Ten of them who are not from Sogod were brought to the police station and were released at 6:00 p.m. through the intervention of Mayor Deo Durano.
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Garo added that he was not able to identify the perpetrators because they covered their nameplates with a piece of cloth. They learned later that the suspects are members of the 78th infantry battalion.
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SUGGESTED ACTION
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Please send appeals to the president of the Philippines, the secretary of the Dept. of National Defense and the commanding general of the Philippine army to express your concern about this arbitrary arrest and physical assault of innocent civilians by Philippine soldiers and to urge them to investigate and prosecute the perpetrators.
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SUGGESTED LETTER
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Dear
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I have learned that Alex Colonia, Vicente Garo Jr. and about 30 other unidentified innocent civilians living in the area of Pansoy, Sogod, Cebu, in the Philippines were arbitrary arrested and physically assaulted by Philippine soldiers during counterinsurgency operations on Aug. 15, 2002. I am concerned about these incidents as similar or even more severe incidents will take place during military operations in your country and that these incidents reflect the Philippine army's lack of respect for the human rights of civilians.
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I urge you to investigate and prosecute the perpetrators from the 78th infantry battalion of the Philippine army who were engaged in this incident so that there is justice for the victims and to prevent further attacks on civilians. Furthermore, I would like to urge you and the leaders of the National Democratic Front, or NDF, to conduct an immediate cease-fire and to resolve the issues that divide you through negotiations rather than violence.
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I look forward to learning about your positive response to my requests.
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Thank you for your attention to this important matter.
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Yours truly,
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PLEASE SEND YOUR APPEALS TO:
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1. Her Excellency Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo
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President, Republic of the Philippines
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New Executive Building
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Malacanang Palace Compound
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J. P. Laurel St.
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San Miguel, Manila
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PHILIPPINES
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Fax: +63 2 929 3968
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E-mail: opnet@ops.gov.ph or kgma@yahoogroups.com
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2. Lt. Gen. Jaime S. De los Santos
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Commanding General, Philippine Army
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Fort Bonifacio, 1201 Makati City
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PHLIPPINES
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Fax: +63 2 813 1811
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3. Mr. Angelo Reyes
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Secretary, Department of National Defense
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Camp Gen. Emelio Aguinaldo
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Quezon City
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PHILIPPINES
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E-mail: osnd@philonline.com
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Also send a copy of your letter to:
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Ms. Valera Quisumbing
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Chairperson, Commission on Human Rights
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SAAC Building, UP Complex
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Commonwealth Avenue
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Diliman, Quezon City
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PHILIPPINES
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Fax: +632 929 0102
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Email: apnr@chr.gov.ph
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Document Type :
Urgent Appeal Case
Document ID :
UA-37-2002
Countries :
Issues :
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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.