“Based on CPP/NPA documents in our possession, it is stated that a major part of their strategy is to mobilize their mass base supporters to file cases against the military whether the case is factual, fictitious or imaginary in order to derail the conduct of military tactical and civil-military operations in guerilla zones and bases,” Tabaquero said.
Through the military-run local radio program in Catbalogan, Col. Armand Rico, spokesman of the 8th ID, repeatedly labeled Castillo as the lawyer of the NPA and of National Democratic Front-Eastern Visayas spokesman Fr. Santiago Salas.
According to the National Union of Peoples’ Lawyers (NUPL) and Counsels for the Defense of Liberties (Codal), from 2001 to 2008, there were 15 lawyers and two lawyers’ groups who have either been told that they are included in the military’s order of battle (OB) or have been openly accused of being communist rebels. Two of the 15 lawyers have already been killed — Norman Bocar, who was gunned down on Sept. 1, 2005, in Borongan, Eastern Samar, and Juvy Magsino, shot dead on Feb. 13, 2004 in Naujan, Mindoro Oriental.
Happens Nationwide
The attacks on Karapatan and its volunteers take on many forms. In fact, 34 Karapatan members have already been killed from 2001 to present.
A declaration of pride (Photo by Ronalyn V. Olea/ bulatlat.com)
Harassments of fact-finding missions are usual. Karapatan’s de Castro said soldiers would block their teams, terrorize the victims or deliberately conceal evidence of rights abuses. In some cases, Karapatan volunteers are denied access to communities where heavy military operations are ongoing, preventing them from documenting cases of violations.
Human-rights workers, too, have been slapped with fabricated criminal charges, such as those in Cebu, Southern Tagalog, Negros and Southern Mindanao Region.
“The military has been trying to discredit the organization and our members and has been harassing us in the field,” de Castro told Bulatlat.
Offices of Karapatan chapters in Pampanga, Tarlac, Cagayan Valley and Cordillera were raided in separate incidents, de Castro said.
Stronger
Amid all these, de Castro said Karapatan has come out stronger. She said that Karapatan chapters in the provinces persevered in the campaign for human rights.
Security precautions are observed as a way of coping with the dangers of their work. Flor Chantal Eco, secretary-general of Katungod-SB, said that to avoid surveillance, they refrain from having fixed patterns and fixed points in their daily activities.
In Central Visayas, human-rights teams are deployed in militarized areas to document cases of violations. “I call them the ‘suicide force’ because they are willing to take on the risks that go with human rights work,” de Castro said.
De Castro believes that the formation of Hustisya!, an organization of families of victims of extrajudicial killings, is the biggest gain of Karapatan as far as advocacy is concerned. “The consolidation of victims is an added voice calling for justice,” she said.
For Caña, offense is the best defense. “We assert our rights and rely on mass actions and alliance work.” (Bulatlat.com)
Hello,
I represent a production company located in San Jose, California called GTC Films. At this time we are preparing for release a new feature length documentary covering the lives of overseas foreign workers, Modern Day Slaves. One of my assignments is to gather a list of names of people in academia, preferably world-wide, who deal with human rights abuse issues, especially those pertaining to OFWs. Any assistance you could provide toward that end would be greatly appreciated. I have added the website containing the trailer to this film for your perusal. If it is possible, we would also be very grateful if you would be kind enough to spread the word about this film to those it may impact. Thanks again.