12 years after death:
Justice Still Eludes Human Rights Leader
The frustrating quest
for justice for Christopher Batan’s death reflects the justice system in
the country: It works at a snail’s pace and you don’t even know if it is
headed to the right direction. Twelve years since his death, Chris’
family, friends and tribe mates are still waiting for full justice.
BY ARTHUR L. ALLAD-IW
Northern Dispatch
Posted by Bulatlat
BAGUIO CITY – I first
visited Lias, a barangay (village) of Barlig, in the early 1980s. The i-Lias
are among the groups of the Balangao tribe, the indigenous people
in the municipalities of Barlig, Natonin, and Paracelis, located in the
eastern part of Mountain Province (394 kms north of Manila).
Elders from Aplay
(from the Kankanaey areas near the Chico River) called biyahero or
travelers who frequently visited the area to buy antique jars, told me
that the i-Lias are among the most feared in the eastern part of the
province. They were brave warriors, as proven, they say, by the shape of
the community in maps, which seemed like the tip of a spear that hit a
mountainside. Interpreted by the men-abig (elders who predict
future events), Lias’ physical formation shows that they can never be
defeated in tribal wars.
I visited Lias again
in 1993, more than a decade after, to witness the burial of human rights
activist and friend, Christopher Lognason Batan. Following the tribe’s
tradition, Chris was given a warrior’s burial. He was placed in a chalipoy
(cemetery) specially designated for murdered members of the tribe. He wore
a wanes (g-string) like any other fallen tribal warrior.
His coffin was not
covered and he was buried facing east. “The sun will light his way and
help his tribe members seek justice for his death,” explained his
kailyan (tribe mate).
Before the burial,
the tribe performed a ritual to seek justice for his killing. In the
ritual, the nearest paternal relatives of Chris tried to let an egg stand
without any support. If they failed, Chris’ maternal relatives would try
next. If it would still be a failure, then the members of the community
would also try to do the task. The ritual is done to determine who among
the relatives or tribe mates will lead the mangayaw (revenge).
Normally in such
cases, revenge would have followed immediately after the burial.
Performance of the necessary rituals by the tribe would then follow.
However, Chris’ family requested that the government justice system be
given a chance to work.
Knowing Chris
Chris was the fourth
of eight children of a peasant couple from Lias. He came to Baguio
City in 1987 to study. While
enrolled as a Political Science student at the Baguio Colleges Foundation
(BCF), now University of the Cordilleras (UC), he tried to augment his
meager allowance by selling newspapers at the Igorot Park. He still
managed to join extra-curricular activities with his fellow youth from the
Cordillera provinces.
In 1987, Chris was
among the youth leaders of the Progressive Igorots for Social Action (PIGSA).
That was when I met him. He was among the organization’s politically
matured educators capable of discussing national issues, particularly the
problems of the Cordillera people.
He too was a
culturati. Playing the gongs with just two or three companions, Chris
and his group masterfully played the eagle dance, a popular dance of the
Balangao tribe.
Chris tried to take
up Law at the St. Louis University (SLU), but financial problems forced
him to stop.
Commitment to
social change
After graduating in
1990, Chris joined the Mining Communities Development Center (MCDC) which
provides service to Itogon communities. He was among the community
organizers conducting education and training among the residents,
anchoring on environmental rights at a time when the open-pit mining was
threatening the people’s livelihood. He devoted much of his time to NGO
work.
Deciding to be nearer
his family in Lias, which is more or less 50 kilometers away from Bontoc
proper, he joined the Mountain Province unit of the human rights group
Task Force Detainees of the Philippines (TFDP) in 1992.
On February 23, 1993,
he went with Mila Fanaang and Anglican Priest Eduardo Solang to Betwagan,
Sadanga, Mountain Province to document human rights cases committed during
the martial law era which were to be included in a class suit against
former President Ferdinand Marcos.
That his human rights
advocacy brought him threats did not stop him. While approaching the
Betwagan Village, at least five members of the Citizens Armed Forces
Geographical Unit (Cafgu) fired at his group, hitting Chris at the hip. A
Cafgu member came nearer for another shot to ensure his death. Chris’s
promising young life was cut short at 25 years by a state-supported
paramilitary group.
A murder case was
filed in Bontoc against the Betwagan CAFGUs. But since the bodong
(peace pact) between Betwagan and Lias was severed due to the incident,
the conflict triggered the transfer of the case to Baguio
City upon approval by the Supreme
Court.
Years after the
killing, an arrest was finally made – Agustin Agpawan was thrown behind
bars. The Regional Trial Court (Branch 59) in
Baguio
convicted him for the conspiracy to commit murder. Ten years after the
murder, another accused, Bonifacio Chumacog, was arrested and convicted on
June 29, 2004. The other three Cafgu members – Mateo Fanao, Kengeb Fayno
and Panyong Rongan – are still at large. According to another Cafgu member
under the Alpha Company of the 77th Infantry Battalion (IB) of
the Philippine Army-Bontoc, the suspects remain scot-free despite the
warrant issued by the court.
The frustrating quest
for justice for Christopher Batan’s death reflects the justice system in
the country: It works at a snail’s pace and you don’t even know if it is
headed to the right direction. Twelve years since his death, his family,
friends and tribe mates are still waiting for full justice. Bulatlat
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