Rights groups criticize Aquino gov’t for continuing violations, failure to act on calls for justice

Rights groups criticize Aquino gov’t for continuing violations, failure to act on calls for justice

 
“The Aquino administration has been contented in being a passive spectator, leaving the victims, relatives, human rights defenders and their lawyers on their own.” – National Union of Peoples’ Lawyers
By RONALYN V. OLEA
Bulatlat.com

MANILA – Raymond Manalo is fulfilling a promise he made to Karen Empeño and Sherlyn Cadapan, University of the Philippines students, who remain missing to this day. Despite threats to his life, he is relentlessly searching for the two UP students and pursuing justice for all victims of human rights violations.
Raymond and his brother Reynaldo were forcibly taken by soldiers on February 14, 2006 in San Ildelfonso, Bulacan. The brothers were transferred from one safehouse/military camp to another and met other victims of abductions, including Karen and Sherlyn.

“At Camp Tecson, I first saw Sherlyn chained to the barracks. Two days after, Karen and Tay Manuel were also brought to the camp,” Raymond said, referring to Manuel Merino, a farmer who was abducted along with the two UP students on June 26, 2006 in Hagonoy, Bulacan. “We lived like slaves, the two women were always ordered to massage the soldiers and paramilitary,” he said in a forum June 29.

In Limay, Bataan, Raymond said he saw how the soldiers raped the two women and burned Merino alive. He himself was subjected to extreme physical torture – his hands and feet were chained; he was administered the water cure or waterboarding, in the parlance of the US military; he suffered burns from a flaming tin can; he was repeatedly kicked, and hit with the butt of rifles. The scars on his face and on his body are a testimony to those hellish 18 months of his detention.

The Manalo brothers managed to escape. And despite the threats, Raymond managed to overcome his own fears to keep his word– that he would help in finding Karen and Sherlyn and that he would not tire in seeking justice for victims like him. “We promised to each other that if any one of us would survive, he or she would testify about what we went through,” Raymond said.

Raymond filed criminal and administrative charges against retired Gen. Jovito Palparan Jr. and other military officials he was able to identify. Raymond’s testimony, corroborated by other witnesses, helped the mothers of Karen and Sherlyn to file criminal charges against Palparan et.al.

Raymond Manalo joins the Run Against Torture marking the fifth year of the disappearance of Karen Empeno and Sherlyn Cadapan .(Photo by Ronalyn V. Olea / bulatlat.com)

At one point during his captivity, Palparan talked to Raymond. “He introduced himself to me, asked me if I knew him and if I am afraid of him. I told him I only see him on television. He told me he would spare my life if I would cooperate with them,” Raymond said.
The Manalo brothers, Karen, Sherlyn and Merino are among the thousands of victims of human rights violations under the Arroyo regime. According to Karapatan, there are 1,206 victims of extrajudicial killings, 206 victims of enforced disappearances, more than 2,000 victims of illegal arrest and almost 40,000 victims of hamletting.

Perpetrators of these human rights violations remain untouched. For the nth time, Palparan and the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) denied custody of Karen and Sherlyn following a recent order by the Supreme Court to release the two..... MORE

Source:  Bulatlat.com

URL: http://bulatlat.com/main/2011/07/01/rights-groups-criticize-aquino-govt-for-continuing-violations-not-acting-on-calls-for-justice/