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UPDATE (Philippines): Protection needed for witnesses to activists' killings in Visayas

June 7, 2005

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

ASIAN HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION - URGENT APPEALS PROGRAMME

Update on Urgent Appeal
8 June 2005

[UP-29-2005: Two more leaders from the Bayan Muna party are killed in Baguio and Tacloban City, UP-59-2005: Another human rights activist killed in Visayas, UP-61-2005: Wounded victim in activist shooting dies]
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UP-70-2005: PHILIPPINES: Protection needed for witnesses to activists' killings in Visayas

PHILIPPINES: Extra-judicial killings; Human rights defenders; Witness protection
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Dear friends,

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) writes to inform you of the progress of an investigation conducted by the Commission on Human Rights regional office in Tacloban City, regarding the killing of Felidito Dacut, Rev. Edison Lapuz and Alfredo Malinao in Visayas.

In a May 30 letter to the AHRC by Mr. Paquito Nacino, CHR regional director, it was stated that a witness to Dacut’s case could no longer be located. The witness, Felix Dumlao, went into hiding out of fear for his life.  Nacino also said that both relatives of Malinao and Lapuz either did not cooperate or have asked for more time to provide statements.

It was learned that the investigators have postponed Dacut’s case (UP-29-2005) until such time witness Dumlao resurfaces to testify or give statements. The cases of Lapuz (UP-59-2005) and Malinao (UP-61-2005) were also put on hold, upon the request of victim’s wives. They, however, suspect the killings were perpetrated by the military.

Considering this development, AHRC believes that the government has an obligation to provide protection and security to witnesses and relatives who fear for their lives and the repercussions in pursuing justice. Obviously, no witnesses or persons who have personal knowledge of a particular crime would testify if they felt their security and life was threatened.

The AHRC believes there is a need to provide protection, security and assistance to witnesses and the victim’s relatives. Such a measure is essential if the perpetrators are to be identified, arrested and properly prosecuted.

We therefore urge your immediate intervention asking the Philippine Commission on Human Rights (CHR) and the Department of Justice (DOJ) to consider recommending the witnesses and their relatives to this cases be placed under Republic Act 6981, known as the witness protection, security and benefit program. Such an initiative is essential in seeking justice and fighting against impunity.


Urgent Appeals Desk
Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC)
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Suggested letter:

Mr. Paquito M. Nacino
Regional director
Commission on Human Rights VIII
2/F OKEY Commercial Complex, Paterno St.
6500 Tacloban City
PHILIPPINES

Telefax: +63 053 321 3396


Dear Mr. Nacino,

Re: PHILIPPINES: Protection needed for witnesses to activists' killings in Visayas

I write to you regarding the progress in the case of Felidito Dacut, Rev. Edison Lapuz and Alfredo Malinao. The three persons were victims of separate killings that took place on March 14 in Tacloban City and May 12 in San Isidro, Leyte.

I learned that your office has recommended that Dacut’s case be postponed until such time that the witness, who can not be located after he went into hiding for fear of his life, resurfaces to give statements and testify. I am also aware that both the widows of Lapuz and Malinao have asked for more time to decide before they will cooperate on any efforts regarding their deceased husband’s cases.

I express deep concern regarding serious threats to the safety and security of the witnesses and the victim’s relatives. It is my belief that the government has an obligation to ensure protection, security and assistance to any witnesses to crimes as stipulated in the Republic Act 6981.

With this in mind, I urge your office to study and initiate immediate recommendation to the Department of Justice (DOJ) to place the witnesses and the victim’s relatives under witness protection.

I believed that the gesture showed by the witness and relatives does not constitute an ‘unwillingness’ on their part to cooperate in the process of investigation and prosecution. Instead, I believe that the witnesses and relatives have experienced serious threats to their life and security and this is the reason for their partial reluctance to pursue justice. It is obvious that no person or anybody knowledge of a crime would come forward if they felt threatened or in danger.

The provision of protection, security and assistance to the witnesses in these cases is essential in identifying, arresting and prosecuting the perpetrators. I believe that only after they are assured of such protection, that their cooperation and willingness to help authorities in solving the crime will follow.

I trust that you will take action on this serious matter.


Respectfully yours,


________________

SEND A COPY TO:

1. Ms Gloria Macapagal Arroyo
President
Malacanang Palace
J.P. Laurel St., San Miguel
Manila, NCR 1005
PHILIPPINES
Fax: +63 2929 3968

2. Commissioner Purificacion Quisumbing
Commission on Human Rights
SAAC Bldg., Commonwealth Avenue
U.P. Complex, Diliman, Quezon City
PHILIPPINES
Fax: +63 2 929 0102/928 0848
Email: drpvq@chr.gov.ph

3. Secretary Avelino J. Cruz Jr.
Department of National Defense
Room 301 DND Bldg.,
Camp Emilio Aguinaldo
E. de los Santos Avenue, Quezon City
PHILIPPINES
Fax: +63 2911 6213
Email: osnd@philonline.com

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

5. Secretary Raul M. Gonzalez
Department of Justice (DOJ)
Padre Faura St., Manila
PHILIPPINES
Direct Line +63 2 521-8344; 5213721
Trunkline  +63 2 523-84-81 loc.214
Tel. Nos. +63 2 523-8481 to 98
Telefax: +63 2 521-1614
Email:  sad@doj.gov.ph 

Thank you

Urgent Appeals Desk
Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC)

Document Type :
Urgent Appeal Update
Document ID :
UP-70-2005
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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.