Exclusive Maguindanao

Interview with massacre by

Prof Robert Alston Dr Eva Lotta Hedman
pp 8-9 pp 4-5

Newsletter
CAMPAIGN AUTUMN 2010
FOR
HUMAN
RIGHTS
PHILIPPINES

Enforced disappearances on
agenda for CHRP Europe tour
C
HRP welcomes Concepcion
Empeno, Raymond Manalo and
Remigio Saladero to the UK this
month in the first leg of a Europe tour
arranged in conjunction with Amnesty
International and the support of UNI-
SON and the Sigrid Rausing Trust.
The three, all victims of or relatives of
victims of enforced disappearance and
wrongful arrest, will tour the UK and
mainland Europe, speaking at events
and conferences and meeting politicians,
unions, community groups and the media.
Among the trios’ appointments will be an
event hosted at the Amnesty International
Human Rights Action Centre, a meeting
with the All-Party Parliamentary Group
on Human Rights and a meeting with
Amnesty International’s Secretary General.
Mr Manalo is a farmer who escaped cap-
tivity after being kidnapped by men widely
suspected to be in the employ of the Armed
Forces of the Philippines (AFP). Raymond
was tortured by his kidnappers, and also
witnessed the torture of two university stu-
dents, Sherlyn Cadapan and Karen Empeno. misspelled names and incorrect addresses. CHRP Honorary President Canon Bar-
Concepcion Empeno is the mother Mr Manalo said of the tour: “To visit ry Naylor said: ‘If people in the UK and
of Karen Empeno, one of the two stu- the UK is very important for me. I want Europe can add their voices to the condem-
dents who have been missing now for to tell the world the truth that state nation of such atrocities, we hope the situa-
four years. Both were abducted while forces in the Philippines have been and tion may be able to change in the future so
conducting research in a rural village. still are responsible for perpetrating the that Filipinos can go about their everyday
Remigio Saladero, chief counsel to the worst kinds of human rights violations.” lives without living in fear of their life.
union umbrella organisation Kilusang Mayo Mrs Empeno said: “This trip is a step ‘The seemingly ongoing culture
Uno (KMU), is a well-known labour lawyer towards a solution to the disappearance of of impunity around enforced disap-
who was subjected to wrongful arrest and Karen and Sherlyn. We want to pressure the pearances and extra-judicial killings
imprisoned for three months on trumped- new administration to prioritize the human in the Philippines must end now.’
up charges of murder. The warrants used rights problems in the Philippines, because New president Benigno ‘Noynoy’ Aqui-
to arrest Mr Saladero Jr and those he was despite our pleas, our new president re- no, son of People Power president Corazon
at the time were all defective, containing mains deaf, blind and mute to our concerns. Aquino, committed his government to end-
continued on page 3

Letter from the Chairman
Rafael Joseph
Maramag
I
T HAS been a turbulent year for Philippine
human rights. Since our newsletter was last
published in 2009, the Maguindanao kill-
ings saw Philippine political violence dominate
the global news headlines for an all too brief
moment. However, subsequent cases such as the
February arrest and imprisonment of the ‘Mo-
rong 43’ the murder in June of labour leader
Edward Panganiban, and the ongoing plight of
Jonas Burgos, James Balao, Sherlyn Cadapan
and Karen Empeno and many others like them
failed to generate any international coverage. “With 100 days of Aquino’s presidency, now
Then came election season. Many re-
joiced at the chance to rid ourselves of Glo- is the time to scrutinise the government and
ria Arroyo, yet while the election of Noynoy
Aquino brought the end to Arroyo’s regime pressure them to deliver change.”
and our ‘democratic institutions’ were cel-
ebrated by Hillary Clinton, questions remain as to whether
Noynoy will, or can, demolish the ‘culture of impunity.’
In the first 10 days since his election, five people were
killed. By the end of July, leading bishops urged Aqui-
no to give ‘substance to his pronouncements’, while only a
month later the world saw the torture meted out on a rou-
tine basis by Philippine police that suggests demolishing
human rights abuses is not as easy as winning an election.
With the 100 days of Noynoy’s presidency up, now is the
time for his progress to be scrutinised and the government
pressed to deliver change. In this, CHRP will work as hard
in the year ahead as it has in the year just gone to join Phil-
ippine activists in holding politicians and the political sys-
tem to account and informing others of the wrongs we see.
The year has also been active for CHRP, which coordinated
the visit of Edith Burgos and her son JL to the UK and Europe,
CAMPAIGN The Campaign for Human Rights in the Philippines
FOR c/o PIPLinks, Finspace
HUMAN 225-229 Seven Sisters Road
RIGHTS London N4 2DA
Phone: +44 (0)207 263 1002
PHILIPPINES Email: info@chrp.org.uk
Website: http://www.chrp.org.uk
2 Campaign for Human Rights Philippines | Autumn 2010  Autumn 2010  | Campaign for Human Rights Philippines  3
MAGUINDANAO UK RALLY
I
n March this year, CHRP joined forces
with the International Federation of
Journalists (IFJ), the National Union
of Journalists (NUJ) and Amnesty Intrna-
tional to condemn the Maguindanao kill-
ings. At a rally hosted by Amnesty Interna-
tional at the Human Rights Action Centre
to mark 100 days since the November 23,
ENFORCED DISAPPEARANCES
continued from page 1
ing the country’s record of human rights
abuses, but little progress has been made
thus far, with the new president’s first 10
meeting with politicians and journalists, and speaking at events at days in office being marked by 5 extra-ju-
SOAS and the Amnesty International Human Rights Action Cen- dicial killings with no arrests being made.
tre, while in March CHRP joined the International Federation of Leading bishops from the Philippines
Journalists, the National Union of Journalists and Amnesty Inter- have condemned the continuing extra-
national in an event at the Amnesty International Human Rights judicial killings, saying: ‘We are outraged
Action Centre condemning the Maguindanao killings. In June, that the spate of extrajudicial killings that
CHRP joined Amnesty to host a fringe event at the UNISON started during the Arroyo regime, as well
national conference for the first time, while more recently - as as the culture of impunity, continues. This
this newsletter explains -we have arranged the visit to the UK and fact does not speak well of the new Presi-
Europe of Concepcion Empeno, Raymond Manalo and Remigio dent who promised to be the opposite
Saladero Jr. For this we must thank partners and benefactors in- of his despised predecessor.New presi-
cluding Amnesty International, UNISON (both head office and dent Benigno ‘Noynoy’ Aquino, son of
many branches), the Sigrid Rausing Trust and the International People Power president Corazon Aquino,
Coordinating Committee for Human Rights in the Philippines.
Supreme Court‘non-decision’ on Burgos case prolongs agony
CHRP Newsletter
is published in London
Editor : Mark Dearn
Designer: RJ Fernandez
2009, massacre of 58 peo-
ple, including 32 journal-
ists, the organisations high-
lighted Executive Order 546
as critical to the killings. A
joint statement from CHRP,
the IFJ and NUJ demanded
the order, which allows the
use of neighbourhood-
watch type armed “force
multipliers,” or Civilian
Volunteer Organisations, to
be revoked. The statement
also called for a full in- ves-
tigation into military inaction and collu-
sion prior to the killings, and sufficient
resources and independence to be granted
to prosecutors and the judiciary to guar-
antee speedy and effective investigations.
IFJ president Jim Boumelha said: “The
Arroyo govern- ment is responsible for
allowing a culture of impunity to grow
committed his government to ending the
country’s record of human rights abuses,
but little progress has been made thus
far, with the new president’s first 10 days
in office being marked by 5 extra-judi-
cial killings with no arrests being made.
Leading bishops from the Philippines
have condemned the continuing extra-
judicial killings, saying: ‘We are outraged
that the spate of extrajudicial killings
that started during the Arroyo regime,
as well as the culture of impunity, con-
tinues. This fact does not speak well of
the new President who promised to be
the opposite of his despised predecessor.
T
he plight of Jonas Burgos, son of
chair of Desaparecidos (Families
of the Disappeared),Edith Bur-
gos, who visited the UK with CHRP last
year, remains unresolved. The Philippine
Supreme Court failed to produce a deci-
sion on a petition of the Writ of Amparo
(protection) filed more than a year ago, in-
stead ordering the Commission on Human
Rights to investigate the case, effectively
taking proceedings back to square one. The
Writ of Amparo was established as a means
to protect constitutional rights and supple-
ment habeas corpus, often ineffectual in
over the past decade that created the con-
ditions in which the Ampatuan Town
massacre could take place.”The IFJ criti-
cised the decision to promote Gen- eral
Alfred Cayton to deputy commander of
the Philip- pine army within weeks of
him refusing a military es- cort for the
convoy that was subsequently massacred.
Victims’ families have since launched
a civil action against General Cayton.
“This promotion not only rewards a fatal
act of gross negligence, but also makes
clear the government’s determination not
to investigate the role and responsibility of
the military in this massacre,” added Bou-
melha. Prior to the Maguindanao killings,
some 104 journalists met violent deaths
since 1984. The murder of the 32 jour-
nalists, along with other civilians, made it
the single worst atrocity against the me-
dia in living memory and the Philippines
the most dangerous place for journalists.
Raymond Manalo points to where a
fellow prisoner was executed
Philippine courts. The writ was taken to the
Supreme Court after the Court of Appeals
dismissed an application by the Burgoses.
Lorena Santos, Deputy Secretary
General of Desaparecidos said: “The
Supreme Court did not bestow justice;
it only prolonged the Burgoses’ agony.”
Decisions for petitions for the Writ
of Amparo for the disappearance of
National Democratic Front of the Phil-
ippines consultant for the peace pro-
cess Leo Velasco, and, the UP Students
Karen Empeno and Sherlyn Cadapan are
still pending with the Supreme Court.
T
he Maguindanao Massacre has sent
shock waves through the Philippines
and beyond. A convoy of cars was
caught in an armed ambush on Monday 23
November, leaving at least 57 persons dead,
with mutilated bodies and crushed vehicles
found buried in large pits. The convoy was
destined for the Commission of Elections
office in Shariff Aguak town, Magindanao
Province in the Autonomous Region of Mus-
lim Mindanao (ARMM). The purpose was
to file local vice mayor Esmael Manguda-
datu’s certificate of candidacy to run for the
governorship of Maguindanao province in
the May 2010 Philippine elections. Among
the victims of the massacre were at least 30
journalists, more than 20 women, including
the wife and two sister of Mangudadatu.
As news of the massacre spread quickly,
UN Secretary- General Ban Ki-Moon and
the U.S. Embassy in Manila calle upon Presi-
dent Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo to ensure that
those responsible for the attack be brought
to swift justice. At this writing, a local mayor
and scion of the powerful Ampatuan family,
Andal Ampatuan Jr., has been charged with
25 counts of murder and remains in police
custody in a Manila prison. A number of
other people have also been recommended
to face murder charges, including at least
six other Ampatuans (the provincial gover-
nor, the ARMM governer, another mayor, a
vice mayor, and the head of so-called ‘police
The arsenal of recovered weapons
auxiliary forces.’ In the aftermath of the mas-
sacre, Maguindanao was first placed under
a state of emergency, and the entire locally
appointed police force of more than 1,000
4 Campaign for Human Rights Philippines | Autumn 2010  Autumn 2010  | Campaign for Human Rights Philippines  5
men dismissed. Subsequently, Arroyo
has moved to declare martial law in
the province, thu effectively authoriz-
ing thousands of government troops
to make arrests without court warrants
and otherwise crack down on the Am-
patuan clan and its private army of so-
called ‘auxiliary police forces’ or ‘civilian
volunteer organizations.’ The targeting
of women and media representatives in
such large numbers and brutal man-
ners during broad daylight, possibly
resulting in more journalists killed in
a single attack than anywhere else in
the world, was not merely shocking. It
was also the fatal outcome of a deliber-
ate strategy for launching an electoral
challenge against the grip on power
exercised by the Ampatuans through
elective and appointive government po-
sitions, as well as through local police
and private armies, in Maguindanao,
and beyond (the ARMM governor is
also an Ampatuan as of 2005). That
is, Mangudadatu’s convoy itself represented
an attempt at expanding the repertoire of
oppositional politics in the forbidding con-
text that is contemporary Maguindanao.
While the placing of women and journal-
ists in harm’s way failed to deter the fatal
attack, the swift public reaction to the mas-
sacre is nonetheless testimony to the power
of the individual courage and collective ac-
tion demonstrated by those
who joined in this convoy.
The particular circum-
stances and suspected culprits
behind this massacre have
attracted considerable atten-
tion, in the Philippines and
elsewhere. While details and
evidence have yet to be heard
in a court of law, the deeper
causes and consequences of
this massacre can be gleaned
from analyzing the wider po-
litical context and dynamics ,
in Maguindanao, in Muslim
Mindanao, and elsewhere in
the Philippines. There are at
least three important patterns
to consider in this regard: i)
the practice of election-related
violence; ii) the integration of
the Muslim minority popula-
tion; and iii) the emergence
of zones of impunity in the
southern provinces of the Philippines. Many
observers have noted that election-related
violence remains a familiar and widespread
practice not merely in southern Philippines
but in many oth- THE MAGUINDANAO
MASSACRE:
er parts of the
country as well.
In recent mem-
ory, for example, CRITICAL ELECTIONS AND
a reported 186
candidates and ARMED CONFLICT
supporters were
killed in elec-
IN THE PHILIPPINES
tion-related violence across the country in
2004, and another 126 in the 2007 elections.
More generally, ‘guns, goons, and gold’ have
long been a mainstay of Philippine electoral
politics, as have national citizens’ movements
that seek to safeguard ‘free and fair’ elec-
tions against violence, vote-buying and elec-
toral fraud. Diplomacy and Strategy@LSE
More easily overlooked, however, is a pat-
tern of violence during periods when a (long-
term) incumbent president is - or should be
-a lame duck and the anticipated realignment
of national politics spells a concomitant shift
in (entrenched) local structures of power. In
view of the firm grip on local power by the
Ampatuans in Maguindanao since 2001, and
their close association with Arroyo during
a long presidency which is now drawing
to a close, the May 2010 elections pres-
ent precisely such a moment of (would be)
change and turnover in the wider context of
a deeply entrenched authoritarian enclave, or
so-called ‘warlord bailiwick.’ Having played
a critical role in delivering a hefty chunk of
the ‘Mindanao vote’ to Arroyo’s ruling party
in the 2004 elections, the Ampatuans have
since consolidated their grip on local power
and held a total of 16 positions to political
from 2000, and deepening with the conflict, violence and displacement continue
onset of the ‘Global War On Terrorism’ to loom large on the horizon of Muslim Min-
in late 2001, the southern Philippines danao in the absence of a political solution.
saw large-scale government military Localised in the context of southern
campaigns in the name of ‘counter-ter- Philippines, the Global War On Terror-
rorism’ causing casualties, destruction,ism has thus lent added momentum to the
and forced displacement on a scale not emergence of zones of impunity in parts of
see since the early-mid 1970s. A ‘To- Mindanao. As the heartland of the Moro
tal War’ begun in 2000 dramatically Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) and a key
reduced the effective control enjoyed theatre of armed conflict, the province of
by the Moro Islamic Liberation Front Maguindanao presents a political terrain
(MILF) over Muslim areas of central where extrajudicial killings have contin-
Mindanao. A later wave of military ued to feature prominently among civil-
operations in the islands of the Sulu ian casualties. Indeed, the absence of any
Archipelago was waged against the clearly demarcated zones between military
small shadowy Islamist terrorist net- and civilian areas has remained the norm in
work known as the Abu Sayyaf Group. Maguindanao and other parts of Mindanao
affected by protracted conflict and cycles
F
rom 2006 up through mid-2008, of militarised violence. What is at times
however, a new pattern of ac- referred to as clan- based violence, or rido,
commodation had emerged be- pitting rivaling families and their support-
A body is recovered from the pit tween the Philippine government and ers against each other in their competition
the MILF, with informal understand- for local political power and resources, is
ings accompanied by formal diplomatic perhaps the most notorious manifestation
office in Mindan- negotiations, leading to a Memorandum of of such impunity, as noted in a recent study
ao, including two Understanding in early-mid 2008. This lull conducted by researchers at Mindanao State
governorships, at in the fighting coincided, not accidentally, University in Marawi. As the stalled peace
the time of the with the 2007 mid-term elections. But the talks between the Philippine government
massacre. Here, proposed accord was opposed by many Chris- and the MILF have resumed in Kuala Lum-
the-notoriously tian interests in Mindanao and by elements pur on 8-9 December, the shock waves from
violent elections within the MILF as well. Tensions increased, the Maguindanao Massacre continue to re-
of 1971, when and Diplomacy and Strategy@LSE both verberate. Perhaps the calls for swift justice
then president sides began to rearm and remobilize their and the moves to prevent further bloodshed
Ferdinand Marcos had been in power for forces. By mid-2008, armed skirmishes were in the aftermath of the massacre will also add
six years and was expected to leave office in reported in mixed Muslim/Christian areas urgency and momentum to end the injus-
1973, suggests useful insights and sobering of central Mindanao, with MILF attacks on tices and violence visited upon the thousands
lessons for the prospects and dynamics of villages provoking a large- of Filipinos caught in the
the upcoming Philippine elections to be scale AFP military cam- crossfire of armed conflict
held in May 2010. The problematic pat- paign that has continued, and military campaigns in
tern of integration of the Muslim minority on and off, well into 2009. southern Philippines. It can
population is another important but often Meanwhile, kidnap- only be hoped that the Ar-
misunderstood backdrop to the conflict in pings by the Abu Sayyaf in royo administration’s dec-
the southern Philippines. The early 1970s Basilan and Sulu sparked laration of martial law and
witnessed armed separatist mobilization renewed counter-terrorism ongoing military operations
for an independent Moro homeland under operations by Philippine against the Ampatuans and
the rubric of the Moro National Liberation government forces in the their alleged 4,000 strong
Front (MNLF). By the mid-1970s, nearly Sulu Archipelago. In both private army in Maguin-
75% of the troops of the Armed Forces of the central Mindanao and the Prime suspect: Andal Ampatuan danao does not portend
Philippines had been deployed to Mindanao Sulu Archipelago, the re- yet another chapter in Phil-
and the Sulu Archipelago, with violent clash- surgence of armed conflict has led to the ippine history in which conflict in Mind-
es leading to an estimated 50,000 casualties displacement of hundreds of thousands of anao and corruption in Manila converge
and the forced displacement of hundreds of residents, only a minority of whom have at great expense to Filipinos of all faiths.
thousands of residents. With a peace accord found refuge in the government’s evacu-
signed in 1976, live-and-let-live arrange- ation centres. February and March 2009 Dr. Eva-Lotta Hedman is a Research Fellow
ments emerged in the southern Philippines, saw renewed fighting and large-scale flight at LSE IDEAS Southeast Asia International
allowing armed Muslim groups to enjoy in some areas, and new military operations Affairs Programme and a Research Associate at
considerable local power. The resumption of were launched in April, prompting further Refugee Studies Centre, University of Oxford
democratic elections in the mid-late 1980s, large- scale displacement, especially in Magu-
and the creation of the Autonomous Region indanao. Despite the July 2009 ceasefire and
of Muslim Mindanao in the 1990s facilitated the December resumption of peace talks be-
this pattern of accommodation. However, tween the Philippine government and MILF,
 Philippines Elections
2010:
Free and Fair?
Dr Pauline Eadie
O
n May 10th 2010 automated
national elections were held
in the Philippines for the first
time. I was lucky enough to meet Sen-
ate President Juan Ponce Enrile shortly
after the elections and he described the
election campaign to me as rowdy. His
description is apt. In the Philippines
elections are colourful, noisy and long,
for this reason The Philippine Daily
Enquirer ran the headline ‘Carnival
Time Again’ when the 2010 campaign
season kicked off on February 9th.
The Philippines has a history of
bloody elections. However fatality
rates are problematic to quantify as
pre-campaign, pre-election, polling
day and post election casualties are
all relevant but sometimes difficult to
categorize as election related. Before
and during the elections the Armed
Forces of the Philippines (AFP) are
placed on the highest state of alert.
I was part of the People’s Interna-
tional Observers Mission (PIOM) that
numbered 86 observers from 11 coun-
tries. The observers were divided into
teams and dispersed across the country
to monitor various locations including
numerous ‘hot spot’ zones. Filipinos
were also involved in the mission, both
in the central coordination in Manila
and in the provinces we travelled to.
My team was stationed in Iloilo a town
on the Western Visayan island of Panay.
On the day of the election the main
issue that our team observed was that
the whole process of voting backed up
6 Campaign for Human Rights Philippines | Autumn 2010  Autumn 2010  | Campaign for Human Rights Philippines  7
due to too many people being allocated
to each Precinct Optical Optical Scan-
ner (PICOS) machine. Voters waited
for up to eight hours to vote. The
temperature was touching 38 degrees.
We also observed machines not being
delivered as they had apparently been
taken and burned en route, machines
jamming, individuals without autho-
risation interfering with the machines,
chaotic organisation of queues and elec-
tion campaign materials in and around
the precincts. Campaigning in the pre-
cincts is banned but this was circum-
navigated by the distribution of items
such as fans, umbrellas and t-shirts
that helpfully illustrated the names of
candidates and how to vote for them.
Children were also seen distribut-
ing flyers, presumably as they were less
likely to be questioned than adults.
All around the precincts the security
services were armed and in evidence.
All the teams on the mission found
mass evidence of vote buying and
cheating. We also observed ‘voting
through the window’ that is a voter
went into the classroom, got his ballot
sheet and passed it through the open
window for someone else to complete
and return to him.
Officials stood by
and watched whilst
this went on. There
was also a complete
lack of privacy to
vote as the ‘privacy
folders’ supplied
by the Commis-
sion on Elections
(COMELEC) were
shorter than the
ballot papers. Bal-
lot papers are long
as each voter votes
for the president,
the vice-president,
senators, congress-
men and a range
of other local positions.
Voting was meant to end at 6.00pm
but was extended until 7.00pm by
COMELEC, after that precincts were
shut but anyone within the precinct
was entitled to vote. There were reports
of voting going on until midnight. Our
team witnessed first hand the distress
of some voters who had been waiting
for hours with scant instruction from
“Voters waited
up to 8 hours in
38 degree heat.”
either the Board of Elections Inspec-
tors (BEIs) or COMELEC. However,
by and large people did wait to vote.
Voter turnout was gauged to be 75%.
The foreign observers and the Fili-
pinos seemed to view the elections in
radically different ways. The PIOM
stated to the national press that the
elections were ‘not fair, not honest and
not peaceful.’ In some circles this was
Election campaigning is big business
disputed. After the election Maj. Gen
Juancho Sabban of the Philippines
Marines, who I kept in close contact
with throughout the election period,
stated that ‘as long as there are not
200 dead on the street we consider
it peaceful.’ Actual deaths on polling
day 2010 numbered less than 20. The
PIOM team in Lanao del Sur were
caught in the middle of shoot out at
a polling station. The end result was
three dead and one wounded but the
team all managed to escape safely.
Members of the PIOM that moni-
tored the Payatas region of Manila
reported chaos at the polls, not least
because of mass numbers of voters
per precinct, and mass vote buying.
However when I went to one of the
schools they had visited a few days
later the principle of the school de-
clared the whole process was a ‘suc-
cess.’ The only issue she mentioned
was that the crowd were difficult to
control but once they found a mega-
phone order was restored. Meanwhile
Smartmatic took out two page spreads
in the national press lauding itself over
the successful election. Success is ob-
viously in the eye of the beholder.
Election campaigning is big business
erly. The fault was apparently rectified
‘As long as there are and the cards were swiftly returned.
Critics claim that this was when the
not 200 dead on results were pre-loaded into the cards.
the street we Losing vice presidential candidate
Sen. Mar Roxas lodged a legal appeal
consider it against the declaration of former Mayor
of Makati Jejomar Binay as vice presi-
peaceful.’ dent. There were less than a million
votes separating the two and Roxas is
arguing that the result would have been
T
he fact that the elections hap- different if the nearly three million
pened at all was considered a spoiled votes had been counted. Were
success in some quarters. Before the Philippines elections a success?
the elections rumours were rife that the Well they happened and the reign of
PICO machines would not work and/ GMA was brought to an end. Aquino
or brown outs would lead to a failure of is now president, he won over 40% of
elections. The deeply unpopular prede- votes cast and his nearest rival trailed
cessor to the winning presidential can- by five million votes. How far the re-
didate Benigno (Noynoy) Aquino III, sults were the result of a ‘free and fair’
Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo (GMA) was system, we will perhaps never know.
considered capable of all sorts of dirty
tricks in order to extend her presiden-
tial tenure. In the event the elections Dr Pauline Eadie is
pushed through but rumours persist Co-Director of the Institute of Asia-
that the PICO machines were somehow Pacific Studies,
pre-programmed to generate the results University of Nottingham
that someone (the United States?) de-
sired. The issue of cheating centres on
the fact that the memory cards for the
PICOs machines were recalled three
days before the elections as they were
deemed not to be registering data prop-
P rofessor Philip Alston has been UN Special
Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or
arbitrary executions since 2004. He reports
regularly to the UN General Assembly and Human
Rights Council, and has visited the Philippines sever-
al times, most recently in 2007 when he condemned
the military’s ‘state of denial around extra-judicial
killings and disappearances. He is John Norton
Pomeroy Professor of Law at New York University.
How did you first become interested in human rights?
I grew up in Australia during a period of prosperity and con-
sistent economic growth and, for the first 22 years of my life,
Australia had a conservative government. Social justice issues
were not at all prominent. Things changed, first with the opposi-
tion to the Vietnam War, in which Australia’s proclaimed policy
was ‘all the way with LBJ’ a reference to Lyndon Johnson, the
US President who was busily expanding the war. The anti-war
movement also gave added impetus to efforts to elect a social
democratic government, which came to office at the end of 1972.
By 1974 I was working as chief of staff to a cabinet minister in
that government, led by Prime Minister Whitlam. It was an
exciting time and I worked on issues like the rights of Australia’s
indigenous peoples, prison reform, and police accountability,
although I barely knew the term ‘human rights’ at the time.
Were you shocked by what you came to know about
the Philippines? How aware were you of the situation
there before you first visited?
I was very well briefed before I arrived in Manila in Feb-
ruary 2007. I had done extensive research of my own, and
had read a lot of materials provided to me by local civil rights
groups, and had the advantage of in-depth conversations with
some of the key actors. But it is true that reading and talking
about such issues is no substitute for learning about them on
the ground. I arrived with a certain set of assumptions about
the nature and extent of the killings that were taking place and
a good sense of who was accused of carrying them out, but
there were also various elements that didn’t quite add up in
my mind. My views certainly evolved very significantly after I
had had the opportunity to meet not only with witnesses and
victims, but also with the armed forces and government leaders.
How important are successful prosecutions in stem-
ming the tide of extra-judicial
killings?
“There has been a
worry that ‘impunity’ is a catchword that lack of political will-
It is the key element. I sometimes
might have come to lose its ability to
shock because it is used so often. We
really need to focus on what it means
ingness to confront
think about resolving disputes simply by many of the killers.”
in practice. It is that those who might
‘taking out’ the people with whom they
disagree, face no disincentive. In other
words, it is most unlikely that there will be any legal consequences
if they kill someone; there is simply no deterrent. They see oth-
8 Campaign for Human Rights Philippines | Autumn 2010  Autumn 2010  | Campaign for Human Rights Philippines  9
It is in the nature of any sophisticated society that there
will be structural problems that will impede efforts to hold
powerful individuals to account for human rights violations.
“The Human
Rights struggle
is never won.”
The important thing is to make sure that investigations and
prosecutions are carried out in a principled and effective man-
ner so that justice is seen to be done as well as actually being
done. The Philippines has a long and complex history of re-
lations between the executive and the military and it will be
essential for both sides to respect the constitutional limits of
their powers and to work together to make sure that a civilian
government is able to pursue its responsibilities to the people.
You were reported to have said that after your term
as UN rapporteur ends this year that you will retain an
interest in the Philippines. When do you plan to visit
the Philippines again? And will you be able to lend your
support and expertise to the Philippine people some-
ers literally getting away with murder
and decide that it’s a good option for
them as well. The only thing that will
Prof Robert Alston Filipino NGOs are
clearly among the most
how?
I first visited in 1986, within weeks of the EDSA revolu-
stop this mentality is the message that if
you do kill, you will be prosecuted, and
you will serve a very long jail sentence.
speaks to CHRP sophisticated and expe-
rienced in the world. I
received very detailed
tion and I have returned several times since then. The Philip-
pines is a magnificent country and I will always be very hap-
py to return. But while I was Special Rapporteur I needed
Interview by Mark Dearn dossiers in relation to an invitation from the government if I was to visit in a con-
What do you think key blockag- a great many killings, text that had anything to do with unlawful killings. My real
es have been in accessing justice and those dossiers were hope now is that Filipino society will be able to take the next
on extra-judicial killings in the Philippines? not simply a recounting of the alleged facts. They included steps against impunity without needing outside prodding. I
photographs, autopsy reports, witness statements, official docu- will certainly be following events with enormous interest.
There has been a lack of political willingness to confront ments and accounts etc. My work in the Philippines would have
many of the killers. Where powerful political clans, or business achieved very little if it had not been for the superb work done What’s your favourite Filipino food?/Was there a par-
leaders are involved, it’s easier not to confront them. Where by a broad coalition of NGOs, as well as the fact that many of ticular aspect of Filipino culture you enjoyed?
the military are suspected, there is often a reluctance to call them worked closely together for the first time for many years.
them to account for fear that their loyalty might be thrown into Filipino food strikes me as one of the original and great
question. If you have a Justice Secretary who is determined not What potential do you see for hope for change in the examples of ‘fusion’ in the sense that it combines the best of
to acknowledge the realities of Philippines, especially given there is a new government many different regional traditions. I prefer the Asian elements
what is going on, you start out
with a huge presumption in fa-
in office? and especially love the seafood and noodle dishes. In terms of
culture, I didn’t get the opportunity to engage in much of it,
vour of impunity. If you have There is generally reason for great hope when a reformist but I was fortunate enough to buy some wonderful local art
a weak and under-funded wit- government comes to office and it resolves to tackle both the work when I was there, which is have on display in my home.
ness protection, people are not symptoms and the underlying causes of major human rights
going to come forward and tes-
tify, and they don’t testify, there
violations. But we should not be under any illusions about
the difficulty of the task. The Noynoy Government will need
What is your message to defenders of Philippines hu-
man rights?
will be very few convictions. all the help and all the pressure that it can get to make sure
that it comes good on its extremely encouraging promises to The human rights struggle is never won, but it is always essential
tackle impunity and to ensure accountability for past abuses. to have hope and to believe in the possibility of deep and enduring
Were you impressed by change. The Philippines has so much going for it and I have no doubt
civil society groups/indigenous NGOs in the Philip- Do you think structural/institutional problems in gov- that the struggle for social justice and against impunity can be won.
pines? ernance (e.g. links between the executive and military)
inhibit progress on human rights in the Philippines?
 

O
n February 6 this year, 43 health
workers were arrested with a de-
fective arrest warrant in Morong,
Rizal province, on the grounds that the group
were affiliated with the New People’s Army.
The 43, 26 of whom are women, two
of whom are pregnant, were staying at a
resort owned by Dr Melecia Velmonte, a
consultant at Philippine General Hospital
and professor emeritus at the University
of the Philippines College of Medicine.
The group, now known as the ‘Morong
43’ were charged with the non-bailable
offence of illegal possession of firearms
and explosives, and alleged to have been
undergoing bomb-making training. Vel-
monte said they were community health
workers attending a training course orga-
nized by the non-government organisa-
tion, Council for Health Development.
In the following weeks a petition for the
writ of habeas corpus was filed by relatives
of the group, while then chair of the Com-
mission on Human Rights (CHR) Leila De
Lima said the 43 had been subjected to psy-
chological torture and denied the right to
counsel. The Supreme Court ordered the 43
to be presented by the military and police
to the Court of Appeals. However, the 43
never arrived with the military citing a lack
of time to coordinate security measures.
In March, Adoracion Paulino, the
mother of a detainee, revealed she was
10 Campaign for Human Rights Philippines | Autumn 2010  Autumn 2010  | Campaign for Human Rights Philippines  11
THE ONGOING PLIGHT
OF THE ‘MORONG 43’
offered P50,000 and a job by the mili- police and military officers admitted they
tary in exchange for her sons confes- did not pursue searching for Condes.
sion, justified as financial assistance De Lima said: ‘I have been receiving
under the governments social inte- emails from international organizations
gration program for rebel returnees. saying that they are interested in this case.
Later that month, the petition for ha- The UN Human Rights Council is con-
beas corpus was dismissed by the Court cerned about the Morong 43, while there
of Appeals using a martial law doctrine are many international human rights groups
which argues detention can not be ques- which expressed concern as to whether the
tioned once criminal charges have been arrest and detention have a legal basis.’†
filed, regardless of irregularities in ar-
rest and inquest. The 43’s lawyers filed
an appeal before the Supreme Court,
which has so far received no response.
While Brigadier General Jose Mabanta
Jr. of the AFP stated that the arrest ‘was
made with proper warrants of arrests
and search warrants’ comments made
in the last few weeks by now Justice
Secretary De Lima indicate otherwise.
The International Association of Demo-
cratic Lawyers (IADL), the world’s big-
gest organization of human rights law-
yers, is focusing on the Morong 43 as an
international campaign. After a delegation
met with De Lima, she said: ‘I know the
violations. I know how defective the ar-
rest was. I know that the warrant [of ar-
rest] was patently defective on its face.’
The warrant was issued against Mario
Condes, who was not among the 43 ar-
rested and who has never been found.
During hearings conducted by the CHR,
 
CHRP ENGAGES UNION CONFERENCE
C
HRP helped place
Philippine trade
union rights firmly
on the agenda in one of Brit-
ain’s largest and most power-
ful trade unions this summer.
Jointly hosting a fringe meet-
ing at the UNISON Conference
2010 with Amnesty Internation-
al UK, CHRP member Jamima
Fagta and guest speaker Dan Bor-
jal of Nethelands-Filipino Soli-
darity told a packed room of del-
egates about Philippine human
rights within the context of the
country’s politics and economics.
They were joined in the Bournemouth
panel discussion by Amnesty Interna-
tional Trade Union Campaign Manager
Shane Enright, Kevin O’Grady of the
UNISON National Executive Council
(NEC) International Committee, and
Amnesty International Secretariat South-
east Asia Campaigner Hazel Galang.
At the main conference, Filipino workers
for the first time addressed the conference,
urging delegates to sign the later unani-
mously passed Motion 101. The motion,
the first time UNISON has adopted a Phil-
ippines-focused policy, calls on the union’s
NEC to seek greater linkages between
UNISON and trade union movements
in the Philippines, work with the Filipino
diaspora to combat trade and human rights
CAMPAIGN Campaign for Human Rights in the Philippines
FOR 225-229 Seven Sisters Road
HUMAN London N4 2DA
RIGHTS
PHILIPPINES
violations in the country, pressure the UK
government to take a stronger line with the
Philippine government and raising aware-
ness of the situation in the Philippines.
The fringe meeting, Violation of
Trade Union Rights in the Philippines,
was followed by a lively question and
answer session, with delegates keen to
learn about the fragile state of human
rights for Philippine trade unionists.
Dan Borjal, who flew in from Holland
to address the Bournemouth meeting,
urged delegates to condemn the culture
of impunity that surrounds extra-judicial
killings in the Philippines, highlighting
the job scarcity, privatization and union
busting techniques -including assassina-
tion - that pervade the country. Delegates
were also reminded of the massacre
of more than 50 people in Magu-
indanao in November last year.
In the main conference hall, Fil-
ipina Josefina Paez, from Wolver-
hampton, highlighted the case of
Edward Panganiban, while Dong
Dumilag, a Filipino living in Car-
diff, Wales, spoke to about the case
of the ‘Morong 43’ highlighting
that the case was taken by friends
and relatives to the United Nations
Human Rights Council, in Geneva.
‘We want to campaign for
the new government to stop
impunity in the Philippines,
prosecute those responsible for the mur-
der and disappearances of workers, and
to implement a sustainable economic
programme so that Filipino workers
are not forced to leave their country
to earn a decent living’ Dumilag said.