Dear friends,
The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) deeply regrets to inform you of the death by shooting of an urban poor leader and her son in Quezon City, Metro Manila on October 9, 2009. The victims were shot at close range by security guards when they tried to prevent them from fencing off their dwellings. The security guards were employed by a person who claimed ownership of the land that the villagers had been occupying for over 20 years.
CASE DETAILS:
According to the information received from the Urban Poor Associates (UPA), a Non-Governmental Organization that advocates for housing rights, Maria Myrna Porcare, leader of Samahan ng Magkakapitbahay sa Pechayan (SAMASAPE) and her son, Jimyr Porcare, were shot dead by private security guards of Melecio Lavares, a person claiming to be owner of the contested property.
The contested lot where the incident took place is located in Pechayan, Barangay (village) North Fairview, in Quezon City. It is an urban poor community near the Tullahan River.
The guards were responding to orders by the land owner who had been granted a writ of execution by the Metropolitan Trial Court (MTC) Branch 38 in Quezon City for the eviction of a family named Domingo. The family is reported to have also been occupying a portion of the contested 2.4 hectare property.
However, when the guards began fencing the property, instead of fencing only the areas which the Domingo family was occupying (and which is the subject of the court order), the guards had started fencing the entire 2.4 hectares, which prompted the villagers to resist them. The areas the guards were fencing included the houses and dwellings of the victims and over 1,000 informal settlers who had been living in the area for over 20 years.
Mrs. Porcare was leading the villagers in trying to stop the guards when she was shot in the stomach with a shot gun. When her son, Jimyr, rushed to her side he was shot and killed instantly. Photo 1 and 2. The 15 security guards in attendance were all armed with shotguns.
The perpetrators, whose names for the time being cannot be mentioned, have been charged with two counts of homicide. They were arrested and taken to the Crime Investigation Detection Unit (CIDU) of the Philippine National Police (PNP) in Camp General Tomas Karingal in Quezon City where they are presently being held.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:
The AHRC has in the past documented hundreds of cases wherein human rights and political activists have been targeted because of their human rights work.
In its special report published in February 2007, entitled “the Criminal Justice System of the Philippines is Rotten”, it provided details and analysis as to how cases are investigated, prosecuted and taken to court. The report revealed that the widespread impunity, lack of convictions and legal remedies to victims of extrajudicial killings, is aggravated by the systemic defects within the country’s institution of justice.
Also in February 2007, Philip Alston, Special Rapporteur on Extra-judicial, Summary, or Arbitrary Executions of the United Nations, went to the Philippines for his country visit to conduct field investigations into the cases of extrajudicial killings. His visit and the subsequent publication of his report were able to reduce the numbers of killings.
However, many of Alston’s recommendations and also that of the UN Human Rights Council’s (HRC) in concluding the Universal Periodic Review on April 11, 2008 have not been adequately implemented. The AHRC’s sister organization, the Asian Legal Resource Center (ALRC) in its written submission enumerated the recommendations on the Philippines that it failed to implement.
SUGGESTED ACTION:
Please write letters to the concerned authorities below asking them to ensure that the investigation and prosecution of this case in court is adequate. It should also consider providing compensation to the family of the deceased.
The AHRC has also written letters to the Special Rapporteurs on Extra-judicial, Summary, or Arbitrary Executions, Human Rights Defenders and on Adequate Housing.
To support this case, please click here: SEND APPEAL LETTER
SAMPLE LETTER
Dear __________,
PHILIPPINES: An urban poor leader and her son killed for defending their dwelling
Name of victims killed:
1. Maria Myrna Porcare, a leader of Samahan ng Magkakapitbahay sa Pechayan (SAMASAPE)
2. Jimyr Porcare, son of victim No. 1. They both lived in Pechayan, Barangay (village) North Fairview, a community near Tullahan River in Quezon City
Alleged perpetrators: Security guards of Melecio Lavares, a person claiming ownership of the contested lot the victims and their fellow villagers are occupying.
Date of incident: October 9, 2009
I am writing to express my deep concern for the killing of Maria Myrna Porcare, an urban poor leader, and her son, Jimyr, when they defended theirs and their fellow villagers’ dwellings on October 9, 2009. The mother and son were among the 1,000 informal settlers in a 2.4 hectare property in North Fairview, Quezon City.
The incident took place after the security guards of Melecio Lavares, a person claiming ownership of the contested lot the victims and their fellow villagers are occupying, began fencing the area that was not included in the boundary of his property. When Lavares’s guards went to fence off the place, they had orders from the local Metropolitan Trial Court Branch 38 in Quezon City, for the eviction of the Domingo family only.
The Domingo family is reported to have also been occupying a portion of the 2.4 hectare contested property. However, the lot to which the couple had occupied and is the subject of the court order for eviction is only a fraction of the contested lot.
However, the guards, instead of fencing the boundaries as mentioned in the court order proceeded to fence off the dwellings of other villagers. The guards persistence on illegally fencing the areas no longer covered by the court order resulted in the needless conflict between them and the villagers which lead to the killing of the mother and son.
When Mrs. Porcare prevented the guards from fencing theirs and their fellow villagers’ dwellings, she was shot at close range with a shot gun. When her son rushed to her side he was shot and killed instantly. The needless death of this mother and her son is shocking.
Although I appreciate the arrest and subsequent detention of the perpetrators I have deep reservations as to how the case will progress in terms of investigation, prosecution and hearing of the case in court. I am aware that even if cases are filed in court, the probability of the perpetrators not being held to account remains high. I therefore urge you to closely monitor the case in order for the police, the prosecutors and the court to ensure the possibility of securing a conviction.
I also urge you to consider affording compensation to the families of the dead.
Respectfully yours,
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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. Mr. Noli De Castro
Vice President of the Philippines and Chairman
Housing and Urban Development Coordinating Council
15th Floor Banco De Oro Bldg.,
Paseo de Roxas, Makati City
PHILIPPINES
Tel. No.: +63 2 811 4159
E-mail: bdsec@hlurb.gov.ph
3. Ms. Leila De Lima
Commissioner
Commission on Human Rights
SAAC Bldg., Commonwealth Avenue
U.P. Complex, Diliman
Quezon City
PHILIPPINES
Fax: +63 2 929 0102
Tel: +63 2 928 5655 / 926 6188
E-mail: mtm_rodulfo@yahoo.com
4. Deputy Director General Jesus A. Verzosa
Chief, Philippine National Police (PNP)
Camp General Rafael Crame
Quezon City
PHILIPPINES
Fax: +63 2724 8763
Tel: +63 2 726 4361/4366/8763
E-mail: ruth_cossid@yahoo.com
5. Ms. Agnes Devanadera
Secretary
Department of Justice (DoJ)
DOJ Bldg., Padre Faura
1004 Manila
PHILIPPINES
Fax: +63 2 521 1614
E-mail: raulgonzalez_doj@yahoo.com
Thank you.
Urgent Appeals Programme
Asian Human Rights Commission (ua@ahrc.asia)
