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UPDATE (Philippines): Police continuously fail to protect wife and two daughters of murdered activist facing threat

October 18, 2007

UPDATE ON URGENT APPEAL UPDATE ON URGENT APPEAL UPDATE ON URGENT APPEAL

ASIAN HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION - URGENT APPEALS PROGRAMME

Update on Urgent Appeal

18 October 2007

[RE: UP-158-2005: PHILIPPINES: Two more activists killed, one of whom suffered twenty-two gunshot wounds; UP- 022-2006: PHILIPPINES: Further witnesses in activists killing refuse to cooperate for lack of protection; UP-151-2006: PHILIPPINES: Ombudsman's failure to resolve cases of murder, extra-judicial killings and torture, prevents police and military from being charged; UP-116-2007: PHILIPPINES: No protection for family of murdered activist facing continuing threats]
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UP-139-2007: PHILIPPINES: Police continuously fail to protect wife and two daughters of murdered activist facing threat

PHILIPPINES: Extrajudicial killing; lack of protection; inaction by the police
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Dear friends,

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) writes to inform you of the continuing failure by the police, particularly the Task Force Usig (TFU), to promptly afford necessary protection and assistance to the wife and two daughters of murdered activist Jose Manegdeg III. Although they did assure that they would reinvestigate to gather more evidence in prosecuting perpetrators after the murder complaint they earlier filed against a military captain was dismissed, they have not taken any action to protect and give assistance to the victim's family.

UPDATED INFORMATION:

As we reported in our previous appeal: UP-116-2007, we raised serious concern regarding the continuing threats to the wife of Jose Manegdeg III, Florence and daughters: Andrea and Geraldine, had to endure following his murder. They were force to move from one place to another after they noticed that they were under surveillance by suspicious persons.

The police did investigate Manegdeg's murder and subsequently filed murder case against a military captain, Joel Castro. However, the complaint the police filed was dismissed by the prosecutor due to insufficiency of evidence. A witness also recanted his earlier statement supposedly identifying Castro as the one who murdered Manegdeg. After the case was dismissed, surveillance by unknown persons on Florence and her two children has reportedly persisted.

On September 4, the AHRC wrote a letter (AHRC-OL-029-2007) to the newly appointed head of the Task Force Usig (TFU), Jefferson Soriano, requesting him to afford the victim's family protection; and that they should release the results of their investigation. The police efforts to actively involve the victim's family in their investigation are negligible, and often they are not properly informed on the case progress. They too have so far not obtained a copy of the investigation by the task force.

In a letter dated September 13, Police Chief Superintendent Rodolfo Mendoza, deputy director for the Directorate for Investigation and Detective Management (DIDM), wrote to the AHRC in response to earlier appeals saying: "[provincial police] is now in the process of conducting re-investigation of the killing of Jose Manegdeg III to unearth evidence that could possibly prosecute the suspect/s".

In his letter, however, never did he mention what action they have taken to give protection to the victim's family. Despite repeated appeals for protection, the family has not been contacted by them. In effect, no arrangement has so far been made to ensure their security. Florence has since been struggling to support her two children on her own in absence of any assistance. She had to raise her family and support her children on her own.

SUGGESTED ACTION:
Please write letters to concerned authorities requesting them to ensure that necessary protection and assistance are afforded to Jose Manegdeg's family. Adequate legal aid should also be afforded to them in assisting them in seeking legal remedies and for possible prosecution of Manegdeg's case.

Sample letter:

Dear __________,

PHILIPPINES: Police continuously fail to protect wife and two daughters of murdered activist facing threat

Name of victims facing threats: Florence Manegdeg, wife of murdered activist Jose, and her two children

I am writing to draw your attention regarding the continued failure by the police to ensure necessary protection and assistance to the wife of murdered activist Jose Manegdeg III, Florence and their two children: Andrea and Geraldine. Manegdeg was murdered in 28 November 2005 in San Esteban, Ilocos Sur.

I have learned that the police, particularly the Task Force Usig (TFU), had been properly informed with the plight of Florence and her two children. As you are aware, this family has since been facing continuing threats following the murder of Jose. They had to take these matters upon themselves in absence of any intervention by the authorities.

What is extremely disappointing is that despite having been informed, the police never took any action on this. Although they have assured it would conduct reinvestigation into the murder of Jose for possible prosecution of the perpetrators, never did they mention it would take adequate action to protect and give assistance to his family. As you would agree, it is extremely important to ensure the lives and welfare of this family. The continued inaction by the police and other concerned authorities in this is completely unacceptable.

Furthermore, although the family have been informed by the police' action to conduct reinvestigation into the case, they were not involved in this matter. They too have not obtained copies of the police investigation report of the case. They have not been contacted despite the sense of urgency their present situation requires. It is disappointing that while the police promised to address this case, as well as other cases of extrajudicial killings, it repeatedly fails to perform even its rudimentary duty: to protect the victim's family.

The police too did not actively involve the victim's family in the process of their investigation. They had to seek legal assistance on their own in absence of any assistance in pursuing for the possible prosecution of the case. As you are aware, this family has been struggling to survive with their daily lives while overcoming the pain and traumatic loss of their loved ones. I therefore urge you to instead use your authority to ease their suffering by ensuring that appropriate legal aid should also be afforded to them.

It is disappointing that despite appeals for protection and assistance to families in this urgent situation the police have repeatedly failed them. By failing to do so, the police have blatantly ignored appeals to provide this family adequate protection. The police' continuing inaction contradicts to its obligations in protecting the lives of the citizens as stipulated in Section 24 (a) of Republic Act 6975.

I trust that you take adequate actions in this case.

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

2. Mrs. 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@yahoo.com

3. Deputy Director General Avelino Razon
Chief, Philippine National Police (PNP)
Camp General Rafael Crame
Quezon City
PHILIPPINES
Tel: +63 2 726 4361/4366/8763
Fax: +63 2724 8763
Email: bluetree73@gmail.com

4. Solicitor General Agnes Devanadera
Officer in Charge
Department of Justice (DoJ)
DOJ Bldg., Padre Faura
1004 Manila
PHILIPPINES
Fax: +63 2 521 1614

5. Mrs. Persida V. Rueda-Acosta
Chief of Public Attorney Office (PAO)
DOJ Agencies Building,
NIA Road East Avenue
1104 Quezon City
PHILIPPINES
Tel. No. +63 2 929 9010 / 9436
Fax No. +63 2 927 6810 / 926 2878
Email: chiefruedaacosta@yahoo.com.ph

6. Mrs. Esperanza I. Cabral
Secretary
Department of Social Welfare and Development
3/F DSWD Building, Batasang Pambansa Complex,
Constitution Hills
Quezon City
PHILIPPINES
Tel: +63 2 931 7916 / 931 8068
Fax: +63 2 931 8191
Email: eicabral@dswd.gov.ph 

7. Mr. Philip Alston
Special Rapporteur on Extra-judicial, Summary, or Arbitrary Executions
Room 3-016
OHCHR-UNOG
1211 Geneva 10
SWITZERLAND
Tel: +41 22 917 9155
Fax: +41 22 917 9006 (ATTN: SPECIAL RAPPORTEUR EXTRAJUDICIAL KILLINGS)

8. Ms. Hina Jilani
Special Representative of the Secretary General for human rights defenders
Room 1-040
C/o OHCHR-UNOG
1211 Geneva 10
SWITZERLAND
Tel: +41 22 917 93 88
Fax: +41 22 917 9006 (ATTN: SPECIAL REPRESENTATIVE HUMAN RIGHTS DEFENDERS)

Thank you.

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

Document Type :
Urgent Appeal Update
Document ID :
UP-139-2007
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.