This story
was taken from Bulatlat, the Philippines's alternative weekly
newsmagazine (www.bulatlat.com, www.bulatlat.net, www.bulatlat.org).
Vol. VI, No. 9, April 2-8, 2006
When
Jaime Fuentes, a witness of the Philippine National Police (PNP) in the
rebellion charges against six representatives and six other officials of
progressive party-lists, removed his disguise, he was immediately recognized by
volunteers of Karapatan-ST (Alliance for the Advancement of People’s
Rights-Southern Tagalog) as a military asset who harassed them during a fact
finding mission. BY
DENNIS ESPADA
The hooded witness who surfaced last month to
accuse activists, including six progressive party-list legislators, of allegedly
plotting a coup against the Arroyo government is a “military asset”. Human
rights workers bumped into him during a fact-finding mission in Quezon province.
Based on a notarized affidavit presented to the
media last March 30, at least 137 volunteers of Karapatan-ST (Alliance for the
Advancement of People’s Rights-Southern Tagalog chapter) identified Jaime
Beltran Fuentes as the same person who introduced himself as “Omar”.
Karapatan-ST said that since February 5, the
barangays (villages) of Magsaysay, Burgos and Anonang in Mulanay town were
subjected to aerial bombings and strafing by the 74th Infantry
Battalion-Philippine Army (IB-PA) under the Southern Luzon Command (Solcom) as
part of a “hot-pursuit” operation against New People’s Army (NPA) rebels.
Karapatan-ST also received reports that cases of killings, torture, property
burning, illegal searches, arbitrary arrests and manhandling victimizing
residents occurred creating fear among the local populace.
A human rights team visited Mulanay February 8,
the day 50-year-old Anakpawis (Toiling Masses) party-list member Romy Lleobet
was found dead with nine gunshot wounds in Sitio Salungkagay in Burgos village.
While the team was resting in a church the following morning, a certain Colonel
Dulay from the Southern Luzon Command (Solcom) harassed and drove them away, the
group said.
Karapatan-ST volunteers took another trip to
Mulanay from Lucena City February 11 passing through several military
checkpoints.
At around 1:30 p.m., the delegation’s vehicles
were blocked by soldiers when they reached the 74th IB-PA’s general
headquarters situated in barangay Pala Ajos, Catanauan town. Soldiers
conducted an illegal search on the volunteers and their vehicles. They also took
video footages and photographs of the team.
Consequently, human rights workers said they had
a short dialogue with a certain Mariz Panggo of the Civil Relations Service
(CRS) in Fort Bonifacio, Makati City. She said she will inform the battalion
commander about the group’s purpose. While talks were going on, Fuentes or
“Omar” appeared and introduced himself as the “ANAD (Alliance for Nationalism
and Democracy) party-list third nominee”.
“Pilit siyang sumisingit sa usapan,” (He
tried to join the dialogue.) Karapatan volunteer Ding Fernandez told Bulatlat
in an interview. “Nang sinita ko siya, medyo nagalit itong si Omar at
sinabing, ‘Hindi n’yo ba ako kilala? Dati akong NPA na biktima ng OPML. Ano’ng
gagawin n’yo rito?
Tutulungan n’yo ang mga NPA?’
”
(When I asked him not to interfere in the dialogue, Omar became angry and said,
“Do you not know me? I was a former NPA rebel who was a victim of OPML. What
are you doing here? Are you going to help the NPA?)
Fernandez recalled that “Omar” irately went
around hurling “ridiculous” accusations, saying that Karapatan is a “communist
front”. The CRS representative later told them not to proceed, which they did to
avoid further harassment. Mulanay’s town mayor Prudencio Maxino has as well
turned down a permit for the mission to visit the affected villages, the group
learned.
Fuentes was presented as a "witness" in the
rebellion charges filed by the Philippine National Police-Criminal Investigation
and Detection Group (PNP-CIDG) against six representatives and six other
officials of Bayan Muna (People First), Anakpawis (Toiling Masses), and Gabriela
Women’s Party. Fuentes claimed he was a former NPA member and security chief of
Vicente Ladlad, a Bayan Muna
official.
The veteran activist denied the allegation,
saying he did not have any bodyguard or security detail. The six accused
party-list congressmen said they did not know Fuentes.
In his counter-affidavit, Ladlad asked the DOJ
panel to exclude the affidavit of Fuentes for "failure to disclose his true
identity to the respondents" and all "so-called evidence which are
incompetent, irrelevant, immaterial and hearsay." He also moved to drop the
case.
Fuentes removed his hat and sunglasses before
the Department of Justice (DOJ) prosecuting panel last March 23. When
television cameras showed the footage of Fuentes removing his disguise,
Karapatan-ST volunteers immediately recognized him as “Omar”.
"Kumpirmadong siya nga (si Omar). Paano namin
makakalimutan 'yung ginawa niya sa amin noon?" Fernandez said. (It is confirmed
that he is Omar. How can we forget what he did to us?)
Though the human rights group plans to return to
Mulanay this week to resume the mission, he said no one wants to see Omar again.
Bulatlat © 2006 Bulatlat
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Hooded 'Witness' a Military
Asset, Says Rights Group
Bulatlat