On the second day of the five-day search for two missing youths Romulo Robiños and Ryan Supan in military camps, soldiers denied the families and rights groups entry to what the military calls a “sacred place,” a forested area beside the office of the Commanding General in Fort Magsaysay, headquarters of the 7th Infantry Division…
Tags: human rights violations in the Philippines
Marcos and Arroyo: Hounded by Rights Abuses
An increase in U.S. military assistance results in a corresponding increase in the number of human rights violations. During the Marcos dictatorship, the unprecedented amount of military assistance given to the government went to the persecution of people and mounting human rights violations. This is what is happening also under Arroyo. BY DR. RAINER WERNING…
Bill Criminalizing Enforced Disappearances to be Filed, Gov’t Asked to Ratify International Convention
There is no existing law in the Philippines criminalizing enforced disappearances. While Republic Act No. 7438 guarantees the rights of persons arrested, detained or under custodial investigation, it does not punish perpetrators of enforced disappearances. Victims of enforced disappearances are denied the protection of the law. BY EMILY VITAL HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH Bulatlat Vol. VII,…
Resistance to Killings as Arroyo Falters
Clearly the Arroyo bloc has been unwilling to try to end the abuses. There are two main reasons for this. First, she fears a coup. A leader of a recent attempt was placed in detention, but still got 11.5 million votes in the May Senate election. Second, her disastrous neo-liberal policies are deeply unpopular. BY…
U.S. House Members Express Concern that U.S. Aid being Used in Political Killings and Abductions
“We are concerned that the extrajudicial killings could be a conscious and systematic part of the Philippine government’s counterinsurgency program and that financial assistance from our government is being used to support, directly or indirectly, those within the PNP and AFP who are responsible for the killings” – U.S. legislators. BY BENJIE OLIVEROS HUMAN RIGHTS…
UN Rep Says Killings Hurting Arroyo’s Credibility Abroad
The United Nations Special Rapporteur on Indigenous Peoples warns that the Arroyo government’s inability to stop extra-judicial killings in the Philippines is undermining its international standing. By Bulatlat The United Nations Special Rapporteur on Indigenous Peoples last week warned that the Arroyo government’s inability to stop extra-judicial killings in the Philippines is undermining its international…
Melo Commission – Still No Surprises*
It is important to point out that while the Melo Commission report is kept under wraps, with only alleged parts of it revealed piecemeal, as suits the purposes of Malacañang, there can not be any meaningful nor even worthwhile response to it except that of continuing caution, if not skepticism. What the human rights organizations,…