On 5 December 2005, activist Cathy Alcantara was killed by unidentified armed men in Abucay, Bataan province, Luzon, Philippines. Alcantara, a mother of two children and the wife of a farmers organiser, died of a fatal gunshot wound while on her way to hospital after having attended the Luzon-wide farmers conference of the Pambansang Katipunan ng Makabayang Magbubukid (PKMM), a member organization of KPD at the County Resort. At the time of her death, Ms Alcantara was the regional coordinator and general secretary of the Bataan Chapter of Kilusan para sa Pambansang Demokrasya (KPD), a national organisation engaged in the struggle for political and democratic rights in the country.
Ms. Alcantara is yet another victim in the unabated killings of human rights defenders and political activists in the Philippines. Her death has further exposed the systematic and frightening violence that is currently crippling the social fabric of Philippines society today. Ms. Alcantara and her colleagues had in the past received anonymous threats on their lives. This was the same experience for many other activists who have been slain in recent times. On several occasions, Ms. Alcantara and her colleagues were spied and monitored upon by unidentified persons.
The unabated killings and attacks against activists in the Philippines reveal the completely inadequate response by the government to prevent further deaths and to remedy this worsening situation. The polices responsibility in investigating these cases has fallen completely short of what is required, resulting in the perpetrators, in most cases, having yet to be prosecuted in a court of law. This lack of an effective police investigation into the killings and violence against activists and the governments seeming unwillingness to properly intervene are the greatest obstacles in prosecuting the perpetrators and bringing an end to these deaths, which have now spiraled entirely out of control.
It is frightening to know that in the Philippines no system exists to properly ensure that perpetrators of serious crime may be brought to justice for their actions. One of the basic elements of investigation, the gathering of evidence, is flawed in the Philippines right now. In most of the cases involving the killings of activist, this inability to properly gather evidence has meant that the perpetrators have not even been identified. Owing to this, many of the cases have not even made it to a court of law.
The AHRC has previously appealed for the implementation of an effective investigation and a functioning witness protection mechanism. Taking such action would be the effective implementation of the Republic Act 6981, an act providing for a witness protection, security and benefit, including protection for activists who are facing threats to their lives. This would be extremely beneficial to all activists who currently face such fears. It would also of course be of benefit in the cases of the twenty-activists who have been murdered since February this year. Most of these cases, however, have not been afforded appropriate action by the government and therefore have remained unsolved.
The Government of Philippines has failed to respond to the concluding observations and the recommendations made by the Human Rights Committee of the United Nations on 1 December 2003. The Government is obligated to take appropriate action, as state party to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), to the Committees conclusion and recommendation that reads;
No. 8. The Committee is concerned about the lack of appropriate measures to investigate crimes allegedly committed by State security forces and agents, in particular those committed against human rights defenders, journalist and leaders of indigenous peoples, and the lack of measures taken to prosecute and punish the perpetrators.
(a)The State party should adopt legislative and other measures to prevent such violations, in keeping articles 2, 6 and 9 of the Covenant, and ensure effective enforcement of the legislation.
The Governments failure to take adequate action in response to these recommendations and to the killings themselves, are clearly depriving Filipinos of their right to life. Such action has terrorised and silenced the people, in particular those critical of the state, which is entirely unacceptable. It has also denied Filipinos of an environment where the basic rule of law exists.
Those alleged to be involved in the killings of activists must be immediately and thoroughly investigated. The killings in Central Luzon and the Eastern Visayas, which are alleged to have been orchestrated by Major General Jovito Palparan Jr., who is now the commander of 7th Infantry Division, Philippine Army (PA) based in Fort Magsaysay, Nueva Ecija, must be dealt with accordingly. The governments inadequate action into this, in particular the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) is totally unacceptable. By virtue of Command responsibility, appropriate actions must be taken against officials accused of allegedly committing human rights violations in the county.
It is a public knowledge the military had in the past accused several organizations critical of the government, including legislators in Congress, party list Bayan Muna, Gabriela, Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas (KMP) and others as being supporters of the communist rebels. This incorrect position taken by the government, however, has not been rectified. Thus, the Governments inaction has created a public opinion that may have indirectly justified the killing of activists who are critical of the state. It is totally unacceptable that an activists involvement with a group could be used as reason for government inaction. It is disturbing that the Government has failed to respond to activists who are facing threats and to the families of the dead. The hope for legal remedies and government intervention regarding this seems increasingly unlikely, unless immediate and proactive reforms are taken to rectify this situation.
In Luzon there are already reports of armed vigilante groups targeting those who allegedly sympathise and support the communist armed movement. It is alleged that they may have in fact committed the killings themselves, particularly since they have claimed responsibility in some of the cases. This, however, has not been investigated thoroughly by the police and those deemed responsible have not been prosecuted in a court of law. The groups, which were reportedly formed to revenge the alleged atrocities by communist rebels in the past, must be prosecuted without delay. It must also be investigated as to whether they have co-opted with state agents when carrying out the killings.
The AHRC renews its call to the government to take appropriate, thorough and immediate action to prosecute the perpetrators of the killings of the following activists: Cathy Alcantara; Abelardo Ladera, Fr. William Tadena and Ricardo Ramos, who were killed for supporting the farm workers on strike in Hacienda Luisita, Tarlac; Romeo Sanchez and Ricardo Uy, who were killed for exposing the military abuses in La Union province and Sorsogon City; lawyers Felidito Dacut and Norman Bocar and religious leaders Edison Lapuz and Raul Domingo, and Bienvenido Bajado, who consistently exposed human rights violations and abuses by military in the Visayas; Labor and peasant leaders Ernesto Bang, Joel Reyes, Diosdado Fortuna, Federico de Leon, Albert Terredano and Jose Ducalang, who were slain for advancing the rights of farmers and laborers for land reform and adequate labor benefits; Ricardo Rivera, Dr. David and Maniti of Pampanga; religious leader Jose Manegdeg of Pagudpud, Ilocos Norte; and labor activist Victoria Samonte of Surigao del Sur, Mindanao.
Until appropriate action is taken into the killings of these people, their perpetrators will remain free and the killings will undoubtedly continue. The Government of the Philippines must step forward if this situation is to be averted.
###
About AHRC The Asian Human Rights Commission is a regional non-governmental organisation monitoring and lobbying human rights issues in Asia. The Hong Kong-based group was founded in 1984
