This story
was taken from Bulatlat, the Philippines's alternative weekly
newsmagazine (www.bulatlat.com, www.bulatlat.net, www.bulatlat.org).
Vol. V, No. 38, October 30-November 5,, 2005
‘The Citizens' Congress Has the Highest Moral Authority’
The
citizens’ congress that will try President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo is an
alternative forum that has become necessary because of the
impotence of traditional institutions and processes to address the serious
charges being levied against the president. BY
DABET CASTAÑEDA A citizens’ congress will
try beleaguered President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo on the killings of 486
political dissenters and the enforced disappearances of 153 others since she
assumed the presidency in January 2001. The cases include the
recent killing of five persons in less than 24 hours in Central Luzon (CL)
region. At around 8 p.m. of Oct. 25, Central Azucarrera de Tarlac Labor Union (CATLU)
president Ric Ramos was shot dead inside a hut beside his house in Barangay
(village) Mapalacsiao, San Miguel, Tarlac City. At around 8 a.m. the next day,
party-list group Bayan Muna (people first) member Francisco Rivera was shot nine
times in front of his house in Angeles City, Pampanga killing him instantly. His
two friends, Dr. Angel David and Von John Maniti who dropped by to chat with
David were also killed. Later in the afternoon, Federico de Leon, transport
group leader and provincial chair of the party-list group Anakpawis, was shot
twice while on board his tricycle in Malolos City, Bulacan. He died on the spot.
The amended impeachment
complaint filed against Macapagal-Arroyo by opposition congressmen on July 25
said the spate of killings under the present administration violates the
Constitution and constitutes betrayal of public thrust. Citizens’ congress Since the impeachment case
against the president was junked by pro-administration congressmen on Sept. 6,
pro-impeachment legislators turned over the complaint to the Bukluran para sa
Katotohanan (Coalition for Truth), an alliance of 50 organizations seeking the
ouster of Macapagal-Arroyo. Bukluran created the
Citizens’ Congress for Truth and Accountability (CCTA) which aims to help ferret
out the truth on the scandals hounding the president. In a press conference Oct
25, CCTA convenor Atty. Luis Sison said the congress also aims to recommend
proper accountability measures on Macapagal-Arroyo who has been accused of
electoral fraud, violations of human rights and graft and corruption.
The Amended Impeachment
Complaint will serve as basis for the CCTA’s cases against the president.
Betrayal of public
thrust The Amended Impeachment
Complaint states that as Commander in Chief of the armed forces and Chief
Executive with the power of control and supervision over her subordinates,
Macapagal-Arroyo violated her duty and oath under the Constitution and its
provisions requiring protection of human rights when she acquiesced in and
provided impunity to the killings of political dissenters, or infringe their
freedoms of expression and assembly. The complaint said her act
of promoting military officers with record of human rights abuses such as Maj.
Gen. Jovito Palparan and her failure to investigate their reported abuses
further violates provisions on accountability of public officials, as well as
her oath under Section 5, Article VII to “preserve and defend the Constitution,
execute its laws and do justice to every man.” Palaparan has been charged
before the Department of Justice (DoJ) and the Commission on Human Rights (CHR)
for human rights abuses committed while he was commanding officer of the 204th
Infantry Brigade of the Philippine Army (IB PA) in the province of Oriental
Mindoro and the 8th Infantry Division (ID PA) in the Eastern Visayas
region. And in less than two months
as head of the 7th (ID PA) based in CL, the general has been accused
of spearheading a terror campaign against political activists in the region that
has so far killed 19 individuals. Despite the charges,
Palparan was promoted by the president from colonel to brigadier general just
before he was sent to Iraq to head the Philippine mission in 2004. He has also
been nominated for promotion to major general which is now pending at the
Commission on Appointments (CA) and opposed by progressive Party-list groups in
Congress and human rights groups. The complaint charged that
“the promotion the president granted to Palparan is a clear act of ratification
and approval of his actions, including those which constitute human rights
abuses.” Constitutional The administration has
criticized the citizens’ congress with Press Secretary Ignacio Bunye calling it
no less than a “kangaroo court.” The CCTA convenors
maintained that the president shall be assured of her rights as an accused and
would be given the opportunity to air her side. In fact, the prosecution
team headed by United Nations ad litem Judge Romeo Capulong handed the
Notice of Proceedings to Malacañang on Oct. 26. However, Bunye’s
consultant, Emilio Magdangal, tore the documents in front of the media and said
it had no legal basis and should therefore be trashed. But another copy of the
summon was forwarded and formally received by the Palace’ Record Section, with
an official barcode of R00321718. Capulong, on the other
hand, said the CCTA has the mandate, authority and legitimacy to undertake this
difficult task. He stated as constitutional basis Article XIII, Section 15 which
recognizes “the role of the independent people’s organizations to pursue and
protect within the democratic framework their legitimate and collective interest
and aspirations through peaceful and lawful means.” “It is an alternative forum
which has become necessary because of the impotence and failure of the
traditional institutions and processes of constitutional democracy to address
and redress the serious charges …, which, if shown to be true, would make Gloria
Macapagal-Arroyo unfit, disqualified and illegitimate,” Capulong said in a
statement. “But over and above this
constitutional basis,” Capulong said, “the Citizens' Congress has the highest
moral authority that emanate from the powerful voices and accumulated grievances
of the great majority of the Filipino people crying for truth and justice not
only on the Garci tapes, the political killings and other human rights
violations and plunder and corruption that are the subject-matter of the Amended
Impeachment Complaint but more seriously the unabated misgovernance and
continued exploitation and oppression of the overwhelming majority of poor
Filipinos under the prevailing system.” The CCTA is made up of
about 400 delegates coming from various sectors of society. It is headed by a
set of presiding officers – or Presidium – led by former Vice President Teofisto
Guingona. Members of the Presidium
are: Nasser Marahomsalic, formerly with the Commission on Human Rights (CHR) and
the Regional Consultative Commission for Muslim Mindanao (RCCMM); Atty. Victoria
Avena, formerly with the Presidential Commission on Good Government (PCGG);
Bishop Alberto Ramiento, co-chair of the Ecumenical Bishops Forum; Sharon Rose
Joy Duremdes, secretary general of the National Council of Churches in the
Philippines (UCCP); Bishop Dan Balais of the Jesus is Lord (JIL) Movement; and
Menchie Caragdag of Peace for Life. The prosecution team is
headed by Capulong who has served in the United Nation’s International Criminal
Tribunal of the Former Yugoslavia and is the current chair of the Committee of
Filipino Migrant Workers’ Rights. Other prosecutors are Neri Colmenares of the
Counsels for the Defense of Liberties (CODAL); and Glenda Litong of the
Alternative Law Group (ALG). Congress convenors include
Sr. Mary John Manazan, OSB; Bro. Armin Luistro, FSB; Maria Serena Diokno,
history professor at UP; Atty. Luis Sison of JIL; and Bien Lumbera, Ramon
Magsaysay awardee and University of the Philippines professor. Hearings will be held from
9 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Nov. 8 and 9 at the University of the Philippines (UP) and
on Nov. 15 and 16 at the University of Makati (UM). Macapagal-Arroyo had
earlier been indicted by the
International People’s Tribunal
that convened in Quezon City last Aug. 19. She was found guilty of violations of
human rights by the jurors composed of delegates from foreign countries.
She is the second president indicted before a
people’s tribunal. The late dictator Ferdinand E. Marcos was tried by the
Permanent People’s Tribunal (PPT) Session on the Philippines in October 1980 in
Antwerp, Belgium. Bulatlat © 2005 Bulatlat
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