Dear Friends,
The following is a forwarded appeal from Task Force Detainees of the Philippines (TFDF) regarding a shooting incident in the city of Panabo on Mindanao Island in the Philippines on Jan. 6, 2003. This incident resulted in six people being seriously wounded with one of the victims dying in the hospital after seven days of treatment.
According to the following appeal, there has been no impartial investigation, although the victims have consistently insisted that the police were allegedly involved in the incident. Conversely, the victims will be charged for destroying crops and have been accused by the police of being armed with handguns and of shooting at one of the security guards. Therefore, TFDF requests that you send your appeal to the Filipino authorities and urge them to undertake an impartial investigation into the incident.
Thank you for your action.
Urgent Appeal Desk
Asian Human Rights Commission
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URGENT APPEAL
Task Force Detainees of the Philippines (TFDP) brings to your attention a shooting incident that resulted in the wounding of six people with one of the victims later expiring in the hospital after seven days of confinement. The incident happened in the barangay of Dapco in Panabo City on the island of Mindanao in the Philippines.
ACCOUNT OF THE INCIDENT
On Jan. 6, 2003, at about 2:00 o’clock in the afternoon, about 100 people arrived at the area of the two organisations, which are also claimants within the contested area, which is about 1,004 hectares. The group which led the commotion is known as DARBCO; they are also agrarian reform beneficiaries. With them were their supporters, alleged security guards of the Octagon and Nakasaka security agency led by a certain Eugencio Aban with Aurelio Solis and Jun Ra?ses. Also with the group were the two barangay kagawad, namely, Ronald Melencio and Winnie Orellaneda.
According to Mr. Rodrigo Rebaja, the chairman of the two groups, the Davao Abaca Plantation Original Farmworkers Agrarian Reform Beneficiaries Association (DOFARBA) and the United Davao Abaca Plantation Agrarian Reform Beneficiaries Association (UDARBA), the DARBCO beneficiaries shouted at them that they will pass over the fenced area. Then they destroyed the fence of the farmers.
Mr. Rebaja said that the two barangay kagawad, Ronald Melencio and Winnie Orellaneda, were the ones who ordered the alleged security guards to attack them.
According to the farmers, they were immediately shot at by a certain Eugenio Aban, who was armed with a .38-caliber pistol, with the help of the two alleged security guards. The wounded victims are the following:
1. Leonardo Abrio, 58, married with two children. He was hit in his left jaw, which exited to his right jaw. He was brought to Davao Medical Centre in Bajada, Davao City, and was confined.
2. Dominador Morales, 51, married with four children. He was hit in his kidney. He was brought to Davao Medical Centre and was confined. He expired at the hospital after seven days of confinement.
3. Carlito Maratas, 26, single. He was hit in his left knee and was treated at Davao Medical Centre but only as an outpatient.
4. Constancio Dano, 63, married, with six children. He was hit in his left leg (back), which exited in front. He was brought to Davao Medical Centre and was confined.
5. Prudencio de los Arcos Jr., 32, single. He was hit in his left arm and was treated at Davao Medical Centre but only as an outpatient.
6. Wendell Bedano, 25, single. He was hit in his left thigh. He was treated at Davao Medical Centre but only as an outpatient.
These victims are all residents of the barangay of Dapco, Panabo City, island of Mindanao, Philippines.
The victims testified that there were three alleged policemen during the incident, but they only wearing plainclothes (their identity still has to be verified). According to the farmers, one of the alleged policemen even fired a warning shot and shouted, \”Pulis ni\” (I am a policeman). He did not intervene, however, during the incident even though the alleged policemen were only about 10 metres to 15 metres from the crime scene. They just watched the shooting incident.
The farmers also said that the polices chief investigator in charge, Chief Inspector Napoleon Mu?z, stationed himself about 100 meters from the crime scene, but no action was taken. The farmers said that the police investigator was in a police vehicle, a white mobile patrol with plate No. SET 712, with two other vehicles with plate No. LES 816 (blue vehicle) and plate No. IDP 161 (red vehicle). All of these vehicles were parked approximately 100 metres from the scene of the crime.
According to Mr. Rebaja, he received a threat through text on Jan. 5, 2003, from a concerned citizen stating that somebody would harass them. This message prompted them to fence the area within their claim, which is still a contested area, and their members guarded the land.
In a newspaper published on Jan. 8, 2003, the police in Panabo City are preparing charges against the farmer-victims for destroying crops and creating trouble inside the banana plantation. The police have accused the farmers of being armed with handguns and of firing at one of the security guards. The police reported, however, that no one was injured by the gunshots. The farmers were \”neutralised\” though by the arrival of the police, led by Chief Inspector Napoleon Mu?z.
The police supposedly were there to respond to the request of the DARBCO agrarian reform beneficiaries as reflected in their police investigation report, but it is ironic why they did not interfere when the altercation started. The police investigator said that when they reached the area the wounded victims were already fleeing and the shooting incident was already finished. Based on their investigation report, they left the station at 11:30 a.m., and the incident occurred at about 2:00 p.m. Although there is a gap of about two hours, it does not take two hours to reach the place of the incident.
SUGGESTED ACTION
Please send your appeal to the Filipino authorities to urge them to take action and investigate this incident and to express your concern regarding the plight of the families of the wounded victims, particularly for the farmer who died due to the gunshot wound he suffered.
SUGGESTED LETTER
Dear
This pertains to the shooting incident which resulted in the wounding of six people with one of the victims later dying in the hospital after seven days of confinement. The incident happened in the barangay of Dapco, Panabo City, island of Mindanao, Philippines.
This is to express my concern regarding the plight of the victims and their families. The bloodshed should have been prevented if the concerned agencies of the government, which has prime responsibility to respect, protect and fulfil their obligations, had done their job.
These farmers were claimants and were already cultivating a portion of the contested area, which is about 1,004 hectares. They were tilling about eight hectares that was abandoned and uncultivated when they entered and occupied a portion of the contested property. They planted bananas through the collective farming of their members. Some of them were already occupying the said portion of the land since the 1980s with documentation from the Dept. of Agrarian Reform (DAR).
These farmers were already identified by DAR and were qualified to be beneficiaries of the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program (CARP) by the DAR office. However, when DAR issued a certificate of land ownership award (CLOA), they were excluded.
I am appealing to the DAR to intervene to take immediate action over the contested area in order to prevent further harassment from escalating again.
I am also urging the Philippine National Police (PNP) to conduct an impartial investigation into the inaction of the policemen who responded to this incident in Panabo City, Philippines, to ensure that there will be no cover-up during the investigation and to bring to justice the perpetrators of the crime.
I look forward to learning about the action you have taken regarding this matter.
Thank you for your attention.
Sincerely yours,
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PLEASE SEND YOUR LETTER BY FAX OR E-MAIL TO:
1. Her Excellency Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo
President, Republic of the Philippines
New Executive Building
Malaca?ng Palace Compound
J.P. Laurel St., San Miguel
Manila, Philippines
Fax: +632 929 3968
E-mail: opnet@ops.gov.ph or kgma@yahoogroups.com
2. The Secretary
Dept. of Agrarian Reform
DAR Building, Elliptical Road, Diliman,
1104, Quezon City, Metro Manila
Fax: +632 929-3968/ 929-3088
E-mail: info@dar.gov.ph
3. Gen. Hermogenes Ebdane
Police Director
Philippine National Police
Camp Crame
Quezon City
Fax: +632 724 8763
E-mail: ebdane@info.com.ph
4. The Chief Officer
Philippine National Police
Camp Crame
Quezon City
E-mail: pnp@pnp.gov.ph
Also send a copy of your letter to:
Ms. Valera Quisumbing
Chairperson, Commission on Human Rights
SAAC Building, UP Complex
Commonwealth Avenue
Diliman, Quezon City, Philippines
Fax: +632 929-0102
E-mail: apnr@chr.gov.ph
Please let TFDP know of any action you take at <rmelecio@tfdp.org> or <tfdp@tfdp.org>.
