Witnesses recount abduction of UP students by military

Witnesses recount abduction of UP students by military

“The abduction could not be carried out without Palparan’s knowledge,” Olalia told Bulatlat.com in an interview shortly after the hearing. “They [soldiers] were all under Task Force Malolos. It’s a conspiracy. His men would not act without his knowledge.”
By RONALYN V. OLEA
Bulatlat.com
MANILA — “Return our daughters!”

Mrs. Erlinda Cadapan shouted as she faced retired Gen. Jovito Palparan Jr. and other military officers at the end of yesterday’s hearing on the case of Sherlyn Cadapan and Karen Empeño.

After hearing once again the testimony of eyewitness Raymond Manalo that her daughter Sherlyn was raped, the mother could not contain her rage. Although Mrs. Concepcion Empeño, mother of Karen, did not utter a word, she held a placard that read: “Palparan, guilty!”

Mothers of the two missing University of the Philippines (UP) students listen intently to the statements of respondents.(Photo by Ronalyn V. Olea / bulatlat.com)

The two mothers have been searching for their daughters, both students of University of the Philippines (UP), for more than five years. Karen and Sherlyn, along with farmer Manuel Merino, were abducted on June 26, 2006 in Hagonoy, Bulacan by state agents.

In May, following a Supreme Court decision that pointed to Palparan and other military officers as responsible for the abduction, the mothers filed a complaint before the Department of Justice (DOJ). A three-man panel of the DOJ led by Assistant State Prosecutor Juan Pedro Navera conducted a series of hearings for the preliminary investigation of the case.

At the clarificatory hearing, Sept. 23, the prosecutors propounded questions both to witnesses and respondents.

Positive identification

Manalo, who, along with his brother Reynaldo, was held by the military from February 14, 2006 until their escape in August 2007, positively identified Palparan, former commanding general of the 7th Infantry Division, and other respondents M/Sgt. Rizal Hilario, Lt. Francis Mirabelle Samson and Lt. Col. Felipe Anotado as some of the soldiers whom he saw or talked to during the months he was held in captivity. Raymond was able to describe vividly the soldiers who he initially knew by their aliases.

Witness Raymond Manalo recounts how he met Karen and Sherlyn.(Photo by Ronalyn V. Olea / bulatlat.com)

On a whiteboard, Raymond wrote down the places where he was taken to during his 18 months of captivity. These included Fort Magsaysay in Nueva Ecija; a safehouse in Pinaud village, San Ildelfonso, Bulacan; village hall of Sapang, San Miguel, Bulacan; Camp Tecson ; Limay, Bataan; a safehouse in Iba, Zambales and a farm in Bolinao, Pangasinan.
Manalo met Karen and Sherlyn in Camp Tecson sometime in August 2006. From there, Manalo, the two UP students and Merino, was transferred from one camp or safehouse to another. It was in Limay, Bataan, at the camp of the 24th Infantry Battalion of the Philippine Army where Raymond last saw Karen and Sherlyn. He recounted how the students were raped by M/Sgt. Donald Caigas. Caigas, also a respondent to the case, is already dead.

Manalo also named Harry Baliaga, also implicated in the abduction of Jonas Burgos, as one of those who abducted him. Baliaga is yet to be named as respondent in this particular complainant.

According to Manalo, Palparan talked to him twice in one night in May 2006 when he was at the village hall of Sapang, San Miguel, Bulacan.

“He told us he would spare our lives if we followed his orders. He said he would allow us to see our parents and we should tell our parents not to attend hearings and rallies and not to talk to Karapatan,” Manalo told the panel..... MORE

Source:  Bulatlat.com

URL: http://bulatlat.com/main/2011/09/24/witnesses-recount-abduction-of-up-students-by-military/