HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH
Muslim Wrongly Identified
as Abu Tagalog, Tortured
Muslim community demands apology
Oct. 29 was a hard day
for Muslim Filipinos. It was the same day newspapers carried the story of
three Muslim suspects in the Valentine’s Day bus bombing being sentenced
to death; when a certain Lalong Parad, a suspected Abu Sayyaf member, was
shot dead in Jolo; and when Amil Salih Flamiano, 27, was arrested and
identified by the police as Abu Tagalog, who was allegedly involved in the
Sipadan hostage taking. Flaminiano was hit with rifle butts, handcuffed
and poked with guns. Later, it would turn out to be a case of mistaken
identity.
By Arthur L. Allad-iw
Northern Dispatch
Posted by Bulatlat
BAGUIO CITY– A high
ranking official of the Office of Muslim Affairs (OMA) in Northern Luzon
demanded for a public apology from the Philippine National Police for the
wrongful arrest of Amil Salih Flamiano, 27. Flamiano was arrested Oct. 29
after being mistakenly identified as Abu Tagalog, a member of the Abu
Sayyaf involved in the hostage taking at the Dos Palmas Resort in Sipadan,
Palawan.
“We urge the
Philippine National Police (PNP) to publicly apologize for arresting the
wrong Abu Tagalog,” said OMA Director Abdel Abdullah Macarimpas.
Director Macarimpas
condemned the manner by which Amil was arrested by the PNP-National
Capital Region, the manhandling by the arresting officers, and the
violations of Amil’s rights.
“They (PNP) also have
to apologize to all Muslims, particularly in Baguio. The arrest of Amil
did not only inflict wounds to the very persons of Amil and his family but
also to all peace-loving Muslims,” adds Macarimpas, whose office had been
monitoring the case.
“There was a
violation of the human rights of Amil. Physical force was inflicted on
him. He was tortured by the arresting officers,” he adds, “although a
warrant of arrest was issued by a court of competent jurisdiction.” The
warrant, though issued by a judge, is allegedly questionable as it only
lists a certain Abu Tagalog, without any description.
Macarimpas adds, that
the call for a public apology is without prejudice to whatever legal case
Amil and his family will decide to file.
Torture
When Amil was
arrested Oct. 29 by police officers, he was allegedly brought to one of
the PNP camps in Manila.
NORDIS learned the
ordeal that Amil went through in a sharing he made after the noon prayer
on Friday, Nov. 18.
Based on Amil’s
accounts during noon prayer Nov. 18, he was hit with the butt of armalite
rifles and handcuffed while in detention. He also recalled that he was
constantly poked with guns causing him to experience mental and emotional
anguish.
Muslims as
terrorists
Under police custody,
Amil claimed that the arresting officers equate Muslims with terrorists.
“The police claim
that when they arrest NPA (New Peoples Army) guerillas, they are NPA. When
they arrest Muslims, they are terrorists,” Amil recounted.
Macarimpas hit the
equation of Islam with terrorism. “The PNP must spare innocent Muslims
from being harassed and arrested in the guise of the fight against
terrorism. Wounds inflicted upon Muslims will never be healed if their
rights are continuously violated and trampled upon,” he adds.
Elusive peace
He adds that
sincerity of the government in dealing with Muslims is questionable if the
rights of innocent civilians are not respected.
“The government
efforts on national reconciliation and peace remain elusive unless the
government is sincere in dealing with Muslims,” he adds.
Meanwhile, the Muslim
community of the city supports the call for the PNP to publicly apologize
for the arrest of Amil.
“This act of the PNP
may become a precedent where any Muslim can just be arrested even without
valid reason and without observing the appropriate processes,” says a
Muslim vendor in his mid-30s.
He adds that Muslims
are in the city to earn a living because the lack in job opportunities in
war-torn Mindanao pushed them to
migrate to this highland city. He cited as an example Amil who is just an
ordinary staff of the Islamic Almaarif Education Center.
Another woman claimed
that the practice of terrorist tagging should be stopped as it condemns
and victimizes Muslims. She joined groups in Baguio opposing the proposed
anti-terrorism bill in Congress.
The Muslims
interviewed said that had the arresting PNP coordinated with the OMA and
other Muslim institutions and organizations in Baguio, they could have
known that Amil is not Abu Tagalog. The reward system given to police
officers for arresting alleged terrorists drive the PNP to “short cut”
legal processes at the expense of Muslims, they added. Northern
Dispatch/Posted by Bulatlat
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