HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH

AFP Urged to Present Officer Accused of Killing Church Worker

The local police already filed a murder case against a military officer for killing a church worker. Up to now, however, the accused officer is nowhere to be found.

BY ARTHUR L. ALLAD-IW
Northern Dispatch
Reposted by Bulatlat

BAGUIO CITY — Human rights advocates challenged the Northern Luzon Command of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (NOLCOM-AFP) to present an officer of the 50th Infantry Battalion (IB) accused of killing a church worker.

Jose “Pepe” Manegdeg was killed on November 28, 2005 in Barangay Apatot, San Esteban. He was born in Pagudpud, Ilocos Norte. For fear of their lives, his widow and two daughters had been on the run after the murder of Manegdeg. At the time of his death, he was the Ilocos-Cordillera coordinator of the Rural Missionaries of the Philippines.

The Ilocos Sur Prosecutor’s Office already summoned in December 2006 Capt. Joel Castro of the 50th IB, accused of being the triggerman in the killing of Manegdeg, to answer the murder charge filed by Police Senior Inspector Antonio Alvis Reyes, chief of police of San Esteban, Ilocos Sur. The case is now docketed as I.S. No. 06-688. As of press time, Castro has not yet replied to the summon.

Documents from the prosecutor’s office showed that a witness positively identified Castro from a photograph shown by the local police.

The 50th IB where Castro is an officer is based in Guimod Norte, San Juan, Ilocos Sur.

“We welcome the new development as the NOLCOM has been pointing to activist as being behind the killing,” said lawyer Randy Kinaud who is secretary-general of the Cordillera Human Rights Alliance (CHRA). He referred to a media release of the NOLCOM in November last year which stated that the killing of Manegdeg was part of the cleansing activities of communists in the area.

“We commend the PNP in San Esteban, Ilocos Sur for releasing the report,” the CHRA and the Ilocos Human Rights Alliance (IHRA) said in a statement as they urged for protection of people who helped identify the killer.

AFP death squad?

The CHRA and IHRA said that the real enemy behind the killing is a section of the AFP and PNP tasked to neutralize members and leaders of people’s organizations they have accused of being part of front organizations of the communists. “The real enemy behind the killings is the state that defines this program. This explains the culture of impunity imposed as these extra-judicial killings take place.” Bulatlat

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