Letter from a Victim of Trumped-up Criminal Charges

/by

I am very much relieved that two regional trial judges have recently finally acquitted me of trumped-up criminal charges filed against me in their courts by state military forces and prosecutors.

This November 26, a Quezon City Regional Trial Court (QC RTC) Judge Editha Mina-Aguba, finally acquitted me of charges of multiple murder and frustrated murder, falsely and spuriously filed against a certain “Rogelio Villanueva”.

Earlier (a month ago), another QC RTC Judge Marilou Runes-Tamang, ruled that I am not the “Rogelio Villanueva” that reactionary military forces and prosecutors also charged with multiple murder in another trumped-up case.

While I, my human rights lawyers (from the Public Interest Law Center), other human rights advocates, my family, friends, and other sympathizers and supporters, have long suffered those false and malicious charges, that were filed against me by reactionary military forces and prosecutors, and that have taken seven painful years before being demolished, we are grateful to the two judges for finally recognizing the utter falsity of those charges, and boldly upholding my innocence.

We are also grateful that another judge have also dismissed in the past a trumped-up charge against me. We hope that the same should happen in regard to two remaining trumped-up charges against me, and also in regard to similar trumped-up charges against hundreds of other political prisoners being unjustly detained in this country.

In my case, I have already suffered eleven years of unjust and cruel detention as a political prisoner, and still continue to suffer such, given the efforts of the reactionary state forces to supress militant advocates of and fighters for the cause of the poor and oppressed and the mass of the people in our country.

There are many — to date, more than five hundred — other political prisoners in this country who have suffered and continue to suffer the same or even more injustice, cruelties and violations of their freedom and human rights.

We, political prisoners, continue to call the attention of fair-minded judges and many others of the like, including all advocates and fighters in the interest of the people, especially the down-trodden, to continue in the work and fight for respect of human rights and freedom for political prisoners and the mass of our oppressed and exploited people.

Resolutely, in the service of the people,

Eduardo Serrano
Political prisoner
Special Intensive Care Area 1
Camp Bagong Diwa,
Bicutan, Taguig City
November 28, 2015

Political prisoners hail ‪#‎ManiLakbayan2015‬

/by

We, political prisoners, hail the marchers, and other participants and supporters — along the way, and even in other far away places — of the October 2015 Manilakbayan.

This mass protest activity has travelled all the way from the farthest part of Mindanao in the south to the national capital, to decry and bring to the attention of the people all over the country the extremely cruel fascism that has been victimizing the indigenous Lumad and other exploited and oppressed people in the country.

It is a relentless fascism that has been going on and victimizing the mass of the people in the country under democratic pretenses.

The indigenous Lumad, have been suffering merciless killings, especially of their leaders and even of their educators, as in the merciless killing of the Alternative Learning Center for Agricultural and Livelihood Development (ALCADEV) Executive Director Emerito Samarca.

Fascist military and paramilitary atrocities have followed the Lumad and their supporters even to the relief centers run by church organizations, that have been providing them with sanctuary and humanitarian aid.
Like the oppressed Lumad, we, political prisoners, have also long been subjected to fascist treatment. Despite the denials of the ruling regime, there are now more than 700 political prisoners at present, practically all victims of illegal arrest and detention, torture, criminalization of political cases, trumped-up cases that include planting of false evidences and use of paid witnesses, and other fascist acts of violence and restrictions in prison.

We appreciate very much that the October 2015 Manilakbayan is also taking up the issue of fascist political detention and demanding freedom, justice and respect of human rights for all political prisoners. We appreciate a lot Manilakbayan’s including us in the route of their march, and staging rallies at the gates of camps where we are imprisoned.

Despite the indifferent attitude of the ruling regime to calls and movements for freedom, justice and respect of human rights, that the Manilakbayan is marching for and demanding from the ruling regime and system, we hope that all their efforts and all similar efforts will bear fruit for the benefit of the mass of our exploited and oppressed people.

Political prisoners in Camp Bagong Diwa
Adelberto Silva
Alan Jazmines
Alberto Macasinag
Alex Arias
Alex Birondo
Antonio Satumba
Aristides Sarmiento
Cesar Balmaceda
Dennis Ortiz
Diony Borre
Eddie Cruz
Eduardo Serrano
Edward Lanzanas
Eliseo Lopez
Elmer Torres
Ernesto Lorenzo
Evelyn Legaspi
Felicardo Salamat
Fidel Holanda
Gemma Carag
Gloria Pitargue-Almonte
Hermogenes Reyes Jr.
Isidro de Lima
Jared Morales
Jesus Abetria Jr.
Joseph Cuevas
Ma. Miradel Torres
Ma. Loida Magpatoc
Marissa Espedido
Miguela Piñero
Modesto Araza
Pastora Latagan
Pedro Calimita
Philip Enteria
Presentacion Estrada-Saluta
Ruben Rupido
Ruben Saluta
Rene Nuyda Jr.
Rhea Pareja
Sharon Cabusao
Tirso Alcantara
Voltaire Guray
Winona Oñate-Birondo

Political prisoners subjected all the more to heavy congestion and poor health conditions

/by

We, National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDF) peace consultants and other political prisoners presently detained at the Special Intensive Care Area 1 (SICA 1) Jail, Camp Bagong Diwa, protest the foul and cruel transfer of seven fellow political prisoners (including three fellow NDF peace consultants, Adel Silva, Eduardo Serrano and Ruben Saluta) from the Philippine National Police (PNP) Custodial Center to this jail.

While we welcome very much being together, we protest the lies that the PNP Headquarters Support Services (HSS) used to justify the pretext for the transfer. One is supposedly to decongest the PNP Custodial Centre.

The fact is that, at the PNP Custodial Center, there are only one or, at the most, two detainees per cell, while at the part of the SICA 1 Jail, where political prisoners are detained, there have already been four to five per cell before the transfer. (The prison cells at the PNP Custodial Center and here at the SICA 1 Jail are of practically the same size.) The transfer here of seven political prisoners, made right after the anniversary of the declaration of martial law, has only made the political prisoners’ quarters here at the SICA 1 Jail all the more congested: There are now five to six political prisoners per cell — with no more bed spaces (so that some of us have to sleep on the floor) and all the more conducive to various health problems.

Worse, most of the political prisoners transferred are elderly, have serious health problems, and would suffer all the more the very unhealthy heavy congestion of political prisoners’ quarters here at the SICA 1 Jail.

Alan Jazmines
Ernesto Lorenzo
Tirso Alcantara
NDF peace consultants
and other political prisoners

Aquino is Criminally Liable According to the Facts

/by
Aquino cannot escape topmost responsibility and ignominy for the gory Mamasapano fiasco. Despite the pussy-footing or overly diffident language towards Aquino and the thrust to put the main blame on Napeñas, the conclusions of the Board of Inquiry cannot avoid mentioning facts which point to the guilt of Aquino for relying on the suspended General Purisima, breaking the chain of command, making impossible timely reinforcements and causing the unnecessary death of his own 44 men in SAF.

Read the first three conclusions and pay attention to the unavoidable facts for which Aquino is criminally accountable.

1. The President gave the go-signal and allowed the execution of Oplan Exodus after the concept of operations (CONOPS) was presented to him by Director of Special Action Force (SAF) Police Director Getulio Napeñas.

2. The President allowed the participation of the suspended Chief Philippine National Police (CPNP) Police Director General Alan Purisima in the planning and execution of the Oplan Exodus despite the suspension order of the Ombudsman.

3. The President exercised his prerogative to deal directly with Napeñas instead of Officer-in-Charge of the PNP (OIC-PNP) Police Deputy Director General Leonardo Espina. While the President has the prerogative to deal directly with any of his subordinates, the act of dealing with Napeñas instead of OIC-PNP Espina bypassed the established PNP Chain of Command. Under the Manual for PNP Fundamental Doctrine, the Chain of Command runs upward and downward. Such Manual requires the commander to discharge his responsibilities through a Chain of Command.

A Cover-up for Aquino and Purisima

/by

Aquino wants to get away from his criminal responsibility in the bloody Mamasapano fiasco by trying to cover up the following:

1. Abusing his position as AFP and PNP commander-in-chief, he authorized the suspended PNP Chief General Purisima to plan and direct Oplan Wolverine and criminally disregarded the chain of command. Who else could have authorized Purisima? Not just Ochoa who can act only upon the authority and instruction of his President.

2. He and Purisima were chiefly responsible for the deliberate absence of coordination of Oplan Wolverine with the PNP chain of command and with the Philippine Army and Air Force.

3. He violated the ceasefire agreement with the MILF by deliberately failing to consult and coordinate with the MILF before the botched up operation in Mamasapano.

4. He was in Zamboanga in the company of his American bosses and handlers monitoring the final operation of Oplan Wolverine and waiting for it to succeed and give him US acclamation and international publicity.

Aquino expected to profit from Oplan Wolverine, he should accept responsibility for his criminality.

The board of inquiry formed under the command of Aquino will certainly cover up his criminal responsibility and make the SAF command take the responsibility to a minimized extent . The propaganda machinery of Aquino is now frenziedly accusing the MILF of brutality during and after combat in order to divert public attention and cover up the fact that Aquino and Purisima were the ones most stupidly and criminally responsible for sending the killed and wounded SAF troops to a death trap.

The scheme to generate a hate-MILF campaign to divert public attention from Aquino’s criminal responsibility is likely to paralyze, if not doom, the GPH-MILF peace negotiations during the remainder of Aquino’s stay in power. Aquino’s preoccupation with the consequences of his Mamasapano fiasco is also adversely affecting the resumption of the GPH-NDFP peace negotiations.

Aquino has a self-indulgent, small-minded and malicious kind of leadership. When Pope Francis was around, he was preoccupied with thinking of how to get back at his critics among the bishops and priests, instead of undertaking goodwill measures, like releasing the NDFP consultants and political prisoners, pleaded by the religious and human rights organizations. When there is a President like Aquino, what do you expect?

 

 

By Prof. Jose Maria Sison

Continuing fascism under faint democratic fascade

/by

(On the 43rd anniversary of the outright declaration of martial law)

As far as developments are concerned that have taken place since the downfall of outright fascist dictatorship, there is in reality and increasingly much to continue condemning today as the nation recollects the 43rd anniversary of the declaration of the Marcos martial law regime.

Extrajudicial killings, enforced disappearances; illegal searches and seizures; illegal arrests and detention; torture; threats; forced evacuations of communities; military takeover of schools, religious, baranggay facilities and other public places in rural areas have kept on increasing and revealing the fascist fangs of subsequent regimes, up to the present ruling regime, even if martial law was supposedly ended 29 years ago.

Of late, fascism against indigenous people, most significantly against Lumad communities in Mindanao, especially in the Caraga region, have particularly been intensifying. This, in effort to break their resistance to pernicious large-scale mining, illegal logging and other wanton destruction of natural resources in their ancestral lands. Lumad people have of late been suffering intensified massive destructions and forced evacuations of their communities; torture, illegal detention and murder of their leaders; rape of their women and daughters; raids, takeover and closure of their schools by military and paramilitary forces; burning of their cooperatives; and other fascist attacks against them.

De facto martial law has intensified in Lumad Mindanao, as it continues throughout the country.
Since its onset, the present Benigno S. Aquino III regime has repeatedly been mouthing that there no longer are political prisoners in the country. Yet it has had the most number of political prisoners — numbering more than 500 — since the downfall of the Marcos outright martial law regime.

Practically all of these present political prisoners have been swamped with trumped-up criminalized charges. Most have been kept in prison for several years now, with their trumped-up court cases going through snail’s pace, and many without having gone through court hearings for many years. Many of these present political prisoners have been kept under “special intensive care” (euphemism for “maximum risk detention”), and cruelly subjected to severe rigidities and fascist restrictions.

Among these political prisoners have been an increasing number (now more than 17) of National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDF) peace consultants and staffs, in violation of long-standing peace agreements supposedly for the protection of these peace consultants and staffs from surveillance, arrest, torture, trumped-up charges and other harsh measures that have been detering their effective participation and work in the peace process.

A number, like Eduardo Sarmiento, Emeterio Antalan and Leopoldo Caloza — all long-term NDF peace consultants — have further been subjected to spurious convictions under trumped-up charges, with twisted “justifications” made by the courts, under pressure by the ruling regime’s fascist military and intelligence forces.

All these only reveal — even under democratic facade — the fascist pangs of the ruling regime, and cast heavy doubts in regard to its “interest” in the peace process.

We, NDF peace consultants and other political prisoners, who continue to be jailed and subjected to harsh treatments and cruelties, and who deeply sympathize with the masses severely subjected to fascist repressions under past and present ruling regimes, decry the continuing reality of fascist practices under thin democratic facade.

We raise loud our clamor for real end to fascism and, despite our frustrations in peace efforts with series of ruling regimes, continue to call for real and serious peace talks for the establishment of a truly democratic, pro-people and progressive governance.

NDF peace consultants

Alan Jazmines
Tirso Alcantara
Ernesto Lorenzo
Leopoldo Caloza
Loida Macpatoc

and other political prisoners in Camp Bagong Diwa, Taguig City
(September 21, 2015)

Tanikala at Talinghaga: Ang Rebolusyonaryo Bilang Artista at Bilanggong Pulitikal

/by

[Panayam kay Alan Jazmines]

nina Kerima Tariman at Rommel Rodriguez
[email protected]

Sa kasayan, sina Jose Rizal, Aurelio Tolentino at Amado V. Hernandez ay ilan lang sa mga makabayang manunulat na ibinilanggo dahil sa kanilang pampulitikang paninindigan.

Si Alan Jazmines, 68, isang makata at rebolusyonaryo,ay dalawang beses ibinilanggo noong panahon ng Batas Militar ng diktadurang Marcos. Isa siya ngayon sa mga pangunahing konsultant ng National Democratic Front (NDF) sa usapang pangkapayapaan (peace talks). Nasa andergrawnd na si Jazmines nang ilathala ng Kalikasan Press ang “Moon’s Face,” koleksyon ng kanyang mga tula sa piitan, noong 1991. Sinuong ni Jazmines ang rebolkusyonaryong landas mula sa panahon ng Batas Militar at hanggang sa kasalukuyan.

Muling inaresto ng military si Jazmines sa Baliuag, Bulacan, Pebrero 14 nitong nakaraang taon(2011). Ilang oras na lamang ito bago muling magsimula ang mga usapang pangkapayapaan sapagitan ng pamahalaan (GPH) at NDF sa Oslo, Norway. Sa piitan, patuloy na lumikha si Jazmines ng mga likhang-sining, tula at sanaysay hinggil sa pampulitikang panunupil at mga usapin sa usapang pangkapayapaan. Mula sa PNP Custodial Center sa Camp Crame, Quezon City, inilipat si Jazmines sa Camp Bagong Diwa sa Taguig kamakailan. Dito rin sa mga lugar na ito una siyang ipiniit noong panahon ng Batas Militar.

Ang sining at pakikibaka ni Alan Jazmines at isa sa mga tampok na salaysay sa “Tanikala at Talinghaga,” pag-aaral at dokumentaryo hinggil sa mga artista at bilanggong pulitikal swa kasaysayan ng bansa. Narito ang unang bahagi ng panayam ni Prop. Rodriguez kay Alan Jazmines:

Tanong (T) : Ano ang inyong pananaw sa sining? Ano ang moda ng inyong artistikong paglikha bago kayo masangkot sa rebolusyonaryong kilusan? Mayroon po ba kayong nalikha o nalathala sa panahong ito?

Alan Jazmines (AJ) : Unang natuto ako sa arte at sining – sa partikular, sa pagdodrowing at pagpipinta mula sa lolo ko sa ina, sa panahong sila pa ng lola ko ay nag-aaruga sa akin hanggsang bago ako magsimulang pumasok sa paaralan. Matiyaga niya akong tinuruan noon, pangunahin nan g mga prinsipyo at teknika nito. Nagpatuloy ito sa panahon ng bakasyon noong nag-aaral pa ako hanggang sa pumanaw ang lolo ko sa mga unang taon ko sa kolehiyo.

Bagamat may ilang bahagyang pagpapraktis na ginagawa ko noon, wala pa akong likhang sining na aktwal na nabuo sa panahong iyon.

Noong hayskul ako, naging kasapi ako ngn Poster Club. Sa paggawa ng mga poster na pinapaskil sa pader ng mga koridor sa eskwelahan, naipraktis ko nang bahagya ang ilang prinsipyo at teknikang iyon. Noong nasa kolehiyo na ako mas nagtuon naman ako sa pagsusulat ng mga tula at sanaysay para swa panliteraturang magasin naming sa kolehiyo, at mga artikulo para sa diyaryo naming (Guidon ng Ateneo de Manila University).

Wala pa ako noong sistematisadong pananaw sa sining o kultura, bagamat mas pinipili kong magtuon tungkol sa mahihirap.
Noong nasa rebolusyonaryong kilusan na ako mas bumwelo sa panliteraturang pagsusulat at sa pagdodrowing at pagpipinta at noon na nagkaroon ng rebolusyonaryong tema ang aking mga gawang sining.

T : Maaari ba kayong magsalaysay hinggil sa pagkakabilanggo ninyo noong panahon ng Batas Militar?

AJ : Dalawang ulit akong binilanggo sa ilalim ng Batas Militar. Una, noong 1974-1977, at kasunod nuong 1982, hanggang sa paglaya sa lahat ng mga bilanggong pultikal sa pagtatagumpay ng People Power sa EDSA noong Pebrero 1986.

Sa unang pagdakip sa akin ay nagtuturo pa ako ng Master of Business Management sa Asian Institute of Management. Pagkadakip sa akin ay itinago ako sa isang safehouse ng National Intelligence Coordinating Agency (NICA) kung saan madalas, matindi at malupit akong tinortyur. Nang inilabas na ako’y dinala ako sa NCR HQ ng Constabulary Security Unit (5th CSU), na ngayo’y tinatawag nang PNP Intelligence Group (PNP IG) sa Camp Crame, kung saan patuloy ang malupit na pagtrato sa mga bilanggong pulitikal.

Sa pamamagitan ng dalawang magkasunod na pag-aayuno (hunger strike), nakamit naming mga bilanggong pulitikal doon ang ilang inisyal na kaluwagan, hanggang sa pagpapalipat sa amin sa ibang relatibong mas maluwag na kulungan sa Camp Crame, at sa kalaunan sa relatibong higit na maluwag pang kulungan sa Camp Bagong Diwa na sadyang nakalaan para sa maramihang bilanggong pulitikal.

Sa Camp Bagong Diwa, ibayong naglunsad pa ang halos daan-daang bilanggong pultikal doon ng sunud-sunod na mga pag-aayuno at iba pang pakikibaka para sa pagpapalaya, kabilang na ang mga nanay na may pinasususo pang mga sanggol.

Masigla ang iba’t-ibang aktibidad ng mga bilanggong pultikal doon, kabilang na ang mga pag-aaral pampulitika, pag-aaral ng mga lenguwahe, paggawa ng mga card at wall décor, pagdaraos ng mga pangkulturang pagtatanghal, at marami pang iba. Karamihan ng mga ito’y may tema ng pakikibaka at paglaya.

Mula sa iba’t-ibang piitan, ang mga bilanggong pultikal ay nagpadala sa Amnesty International ng mga testimonya at nagsampa rin sa korte ng mga kaso tungkol sa dinanas nilang mga tortyur at at iba pang kalupitan sa kamay ng mga pasistang pwersa ng nagpadakip at nagkulong sa kanila.

Malaki ang naitulong ng mga pakikibakang ito sa pagpapalaya ng maraming bilanggong pultikal mula noong mapresyur ang diktadura na magpakita ng “normalisasyon” mujla 1977. Sa gayon ako napalaya.

Marami-rami rin ang napalaya sa pamamagitan ng pagtakas.

Sa ikalawang pagkakadakip sa akin, nakalubog ako noon sa isang komunidad ng mga manggagawa sa paligid ng mga pabrikang inoorganisa naming. Kasama kong mga pinagdadakip ang mahigit dosena pang mga organisador ng mga unyon ng manggagawa ay mga lider-manggagawa noon. Dinala muna kami sa himpilan sa NCR ng Military Intelligence Group (MIG15), kung saan gusto sana kaming tuluy-tuloy na idetine. Naglunsad kami ng pag-aayuno, kaya’t inilipat na rin kami sa Camp Bagong Diwa.

Katulad ng naranasan ko sa unan g pagkakulong, masigla ang diwa, organisasyon at paglaban ng mga bilanggong pulitikal doon.

Mas sa panahong ito ako nakapagtuon sa pagdodrowing at pagpipinta at sa pagsusulat ng mga tula. Nakasama ako sa pagdaraos ng eksibit ng mga likhang-sining ng mga bilanggong pultikal sa Sining Kamalig noong 1985 (Muling nag-eksibit sa bagong Sining Kamalig Gallery sa Gateway, Cubao si Jazmines nitong 2011).

T : Paano po nalikha ang inyong koleksyong “Moon’s Face”?

AJ : Sa pangalawang pagkakakulong ko sa Camp Bagong Diwa noong 1982-1986 ako nakapagsulat ng marami-raming mga tula at inilabas sa iba’t ibang pahayagan at magasin. Makaraan ang ilang panahon, pagkalaya ko’y inilathala ang mga iyon sa librong “Moon’s Face.”

Malaking bahagi nito’y kaugnay ng kaapihan at kahirapan ng mamamayan, pasistang diktadura, piitan, mga pakikibaka sa mga ito at ang tinatanaw na tagumpay at maaliwalas na hinaharap.

Noong nakakulong pa ako, binabalak na sanang ilathala iyon ng isang pandaigdigang organisasyong nagtataguyod sa mga nakapiit na alagad ng sining. Kaya lamang ay di na natuloy dahil nakalaya na ako. Itinuloy na lamang ng Kalikasan Press ang paglalathala.

Si Alfredo Salanga ang nagmungkahi ng pamagat (batay sa isa sa mga tula sa koleksyon) at siya rin sana ang gagawa ng inroduksyon, pero pumanaw siya bago niya iyon natapos, at si Elmer Ordoñez ang siya nang gumawa. Nasa andergrawnd na ako nang mailathala ang librong iyon at may mga tumatawid na lamang sa pagitan ko at mga umaasikaso at tumutulong sa publikasyon mg libro.

T : Maari po ba ninyong isalaysay ang sirkumstansya ng pagkakadakip sa inyo nitong Pebrero 2011?

AJ : Mga alas-sais ng gabi noong Pebrero 14, 2011, ilang oras na lang bago magsimula ang pagbabalik ng pormal na usapan sa pagitan ng NDF at GPH na ilang taon nang nabahura, gumawa pa ng mapanlait na sampal ang GPH sa NDF at sa usapang pangkapayapaan. Biglaan akong inaresto. Nailagay ako sa surbeylans ng mga pwersang intelidyens ng GPJ habang nakikipag-ugnayan sa mga kasamahan ko sa NDF peace panel sa pinaka-bisperas ng usapang pangkapayaan.

Biglaang pinasok ng magkasanib na pwersa ng Philippine Army (PA) at ng PNP ang bahay na kinaroroonan at pinagtatrabahuhan ko noon. Tinutukan ng mataas na kalibre ng baril ang lahat ng naroroon. Pagkakita sa akin ay agad akong pinosasan at inilabas sa bahay.

Naghahanap ang mga may-ari ng bahay ng warrant of arrest, pero walang maipakita ang mga nagreyd kundi isang di mabasang malabong dokumento raw ng korte na ipinagkunwari ng mga kumuha sa akin na siyang warrant.

Kahit wala silang search warrant, hinalughog ang ang kwarto kung saan ako kinuha at sinamsam ang mga naroroong kompyuter, hard disk, cellphone, relo, ilang salapi, at tinatrabaho ko noong mga papeles, kabilang na ang maraming kaugnay sa muling sinisimulang usapang pangkapayapaan.

Nagmamadaling dinala ako sa PNP Regional HQ sa Camp Olivas, Pampanga, mga isang oras lamang pagkatupad ng reyd, upang magawan ako agad ng arrest papers at maunahan ang muling pagsisimula ng peace talks na magaganap na sa loob na lamang ng ilang oras noon.

Iniangal ko na hindi nila dapat ako inaresto deahil protektado ng Joint Agreement on Safety and Immunity Guarantees o JASIG ang mga katulad kong NDF peace consultant. Hiningi ko ring makausap ang mga abugado ko bilang karapatan ko sa ilalim ng Miranda doctrine.

Umalis ang arresting officer at pagkabalik makaraan ang mahigit dalawang oras ay sinabing ang “utos mula sa itaas” ay ituloy ang pag-aresto at pagkulong sa akin, kahit inaangkin ko ang proteksyon ng JASIG at iginigiit kong kailgnan ako sa gaganaping usapang pangkapayapaan. Ang Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process (OPAPP) at ang GPH Peace Panel na lamang daw ang bahala sa mga binabanggit kong problema.

Sampal ang ginawa ng GPH at mga pamunuang militar at pulis nito sa NDF peace panel at sa prosesong pangkapayapaan. Tuwiran at malinaw kong nasaksihan kung paano nila maliitin, bastusin at labagin di lamang ang sariling mga prosesong legal ng GPH, kundi pati at laluna ang mga kasunduan sa usapang pangkapayapaan.

Ilang minute pa lamang pagka-aresto sa akin, agad ipinagmalaki ito ng hepe ng PA na si Gen. Arturo Ortiz, na siyang nagsilbing pangkalahatang kumand sa operasyong pag-aresto. Nasagap kagad ito ng mga taong-midya na agad ring nagtimbre sa mga organisasyong pangkarapatang-tao at sa pamilya ko, kaya nagmadaling tumungo sa Camp Olivas.

Bandang 7:30 ng gabi, nakarating sila sa Camp Olivas pero itinanggi ng mga awtoridad na tauhan doon na naroroon ako. Inabot sila ng hanggang alas-10 ng gabi sa kakahanap sa akin doon. Naroroon lang ako sa buong panahon na hinahanap nila ako doon.

Nang madala na ako sa kulungan ng PNP sa Camp Alejo Santos sa Malolos, Bulacan, pasado alas-10 ng gabi, saka na lamang ipinakita sa akin ang ikinukunwaring warrant of arrest na di mabasang mga dokumento. Binanggit na lamang sa akin na tungkol sa 13 kaso sa korte ang mga iyon na may petsang 1992 kaugnay ng mga napatay na mga p;wersang militar sa mga operasyon ng New People’s Army (NPA) sa iba’t ibang lugar sa Timnog Katagalugan.

Mga alas-11 na ng umaga nang matagpuan ako ng mga kamag-anak ko at mga organisasyong pangkarapatang-tao. Pinayagan silang mabisita ako.

THE PARALYZED NDFP-GPH PEACE TALKS

/by

By Randy Felix Malayao
NDFP Peace consultant

Where is the Government of the Philippines (GPH) – National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP) Peace Talks heading? Despite the widespread calls of peace advocates, the Aquino government has paralyzed the peace talks after failing to impose its unjust wishes on the NDFP.

The Aquino regime has declared The 1992 Hague Joint Declaration as a ‘document of perpetual division,’ a position that would put the whole process back to zero.
The Hague Joint Declaration outlines the agenda of the peace talks, namely, 1) human rights and international humanitarian law; 2) socio-economic reforms; 3) political and constitutional reforms, and the 4) on the cessation of hostilities and disposition of forces, in this order.

The Aquino regime has also rendered the Joint Agreement on Safety and Immunity Guarantees (JASIG) inoperative (JASIG).

JASIG provides protection, immunity from arrest and surveillance to peace talks participants that include panelists, consultants, technical and security staff.
JASIG is deemed inoperative 30 days after (both parties) the declaration of the termination of peace talks. Neither party has declared that it has already terminated the talks.

The GPH has deliberately refused to comply with its commitments in agreements forged with the NDFP, despite the full knowledge that compliance would immediately break the impasse and cause the resumption of the formal talks.

Oslo Agreement of 2011 stipulates that most if not all political consultants are to be released on the basis of JASIG, humanitarian or for practical reasons.

No releases were made resulting to the suspension of peace talks. The GPH did not only renege on the signed accord, it has continuously arrested NDFP consultants and their staff. Such arrests are deemed violative of the JASIG that have caused temporary setbacks to the peace process.

More JASIG violations

As of late, there are now about 20 consultants detained and charged of trumped-up common crimes.

Among them is Kennedy Bangibang, consultant for Cordillera and national minority affairs. He was arrested on February 23, 2013 in Abatan, Buguias, Benguet and since his arrest, he has been transferred from Camp Molintas to Camp Bado Dangwa in La Trinidad, Benguet, where he was detained overnight after the arrest, and then to the Kalinga BJMP District Jail (February 24–July 25, 2013), to the Baguio City Jail on August 2014 and then back to the Kalinga BJMP District Jail.

The arrests constitute JASIG violations. The most recent are as follows:
1) Benito Tiamzon – with NDFP Document of Identification (DI) Number No. ND978227 under the assumed name “Crising Banaag”. Arrested in Cebu on March 22, 2014 along with Wilma Austria.
2) Wilma Tiamzon – No. ND978226 using her real name Wilma Austria. She was delisted in the Joint DND-DILG Order of Battle Memo as she is a consultant of the NDFP. But she was arrested March 22, 2014, along with Benito Tiamzon.
3) Rogelio Posadas, with NDFP DI Number ND978313/“Angel Jose”, was arrested on January 9, 2015.
4) Reynaldo Hugo, with NDFP DI No ND978239 /“Orgel Dimaano”, was arrested on January 27, 2015.
5) Ruben Saluta, with NDFP DI No ND978240.“Lirio Magtibay”, was arrested on March 4, 2015 along with many others.
6) Alberto Silva – NDFP National Consultant; he drafted portions of the NDFP’s documents regarding genuine land reform, national industrialization, and proposals for labor laws and policies. He has been issued a DI, No. ND978229/“Percival Rojo” was arrested on July 1, 2015.
7) Ernesto Lorenzo – NDFP Regional Consultant for Southern Tagalog Region, with DI No. ND978299/“Lean Martinez” was arrested on July 20, 2015 in Gilmore, Quezon City and is currently detained the BJMP- SICA at Camp Bagong Diwa, Taguig City. On the day of his arrest, Lorenzo’s residence in San Jose del Monte, Bulacan was also raided and his wife, Joyce Latayan, was arrested.
8) Concha Araneta-Bocala – NDFP Consultant for the Visayas, with DI No. ND978245/“Remi Estrella”, arrested on August 2015. She also served as negotiator during the 1986 peace talks in the Visayas.

Clamor for the resumption of talks

Despite all these violations, the NDFP has declared it is willing to hold informal talks, as proposed by the Third Party Facilitator, the Royal Norwegian Government. Ambassador Hon. Elizabeth Slattum is moving heaven and earth to revive the talks as the Aquino Regime only has a few months in power.

Various peace and human rights advocates have been pressing both parties to return to the table and resume the peace talks. The NDFP welcomes this. The GPH on the other hand asserts that the NDFP is making unreasonable preconditions (i.e. release of prisoners and consultants).

The NDFP Peace Panel Chair Louie Jalandoni has assured that the panel is ever ready to resume formal talks on the basis of past bilateral peace agreements in order to address the roots of the armed conflict. It asserts that the demand to release peace consultants is not a precondition as it is covered by past agreements (e.g. Oslo Agreement of 2011 and CARHRIHL).

Jose Maria Sison, the chief political consultant of the NDFP, on the other hand, has repeatedly declared that it is the policy of the revolutionary forces to be open to negotiate with any administration of the reactionary government that is seriously willing to negotiate with it.

During the course of the three rounds of informal talks (September, October, December 2014 and February in The Netherlands), a draft agreement to be signed by the two Panels was made for the resumption of the formal talks, which include, among others, the following:
1) respect for all signed agreements;
2) negotiations on CASER;
3) reconstitution of the JASIG and release of detained consultants who would participate in the talks; and,
4) negotiations for the truce and cooperation as proposed years earlier by the NDF will take place with the participation of Benito Tiamzon, Wilma Austria and JMS.

On the CASER, the NDFP sees the urgent need to tackle socio-economic reforms such as land reform and national industrialization. It seeks to take up concrete issues like the Hacienda Luisita and other haciendas; destructive and plunderous mining; the killing of indigenous peoples’ leaders and activists; the public private partnership and its effects on urban poor communities; the disastrous effects of mining on the indigenous peoples and the environment, among others.

A timetable has been set for the negotiations. As a sign of goodwill, both sides also agreed to make releases. But all these have yet to be realized as talks have been suspended indefinitely since February.

 

 

PUBLISHED IN Northern Dispatch, BANDILLO COLUMN, AUGUST 30, 2015

Aquino and Deles are Preconditioning the Peace Negotiations, Using the OPAPP as Center of Military Psywar and Corruption

/by

The NDFP cannot trust any government that does not know how to comply with existing agreements like the Joint Agreement on Safety and Immunity Agreement. The Aquino regime has unilaterally rendered this agreement inoperative by refusing to honor documents of identification issued under JASIG and by blocking the reconstitution of verification documents destroyed by the Dutch police as a result of the request of the Arroyo regime to arrest me and raid the NDF Information office and the private homes belonging to NDFP negotiators and consultants in 2007.

The same malicious person Teresita Q. Deles has occupied the position of OPAPP both under the regimes of Arroyo and Aquino and she is obsessed with nullifying all previous agreements, including The Hague Joint Declaration, the JASIG and the Comprehensive Agreement on Respect for Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law.

She keeps on preconditioning the peace talks by maliciously demanding the nullification of the aforesaid agreements. She is also claiming that Generals Fidel Ramos and Manuel Yan, then president and OPAPP secretary, were not “military” enough or tough enough for allowing then Rep. Jose V. Yap and Justice Secretary to make the said agreements with the NDFP.
Thanks to Deles, she has sabotaged the peace negotiations under the last two presidents, Arroyo and Aquino, and has unwittingly contributed to the continuance of the people’s war for national liberation and democracy. Indeed, truce and cooperation with the NDFP can be realized only if there were a president who can stand for national independence, people’s democracy, social justice, economic development through national industrialization and land reform and a patriotic, scientific and progressive culture.

The NDFP can wait patiently for the crisis of the world capitalist system and local ruling system to further worsen and prod the president of the puppet republic to become patriotic and intelligent enough to seek national unity, peace and cooperation with the revolutionary forces and people represented by the NDFP.
Young cadres of the revolutionary forces have been replenishing the ranks of their veteran comrades. They can continue the people’s democratic revolution and protracted people’s war indefinitely until a negotiated peace agreement becomes possible.

In the meantime, the OPAPP is nothing but a psywar agency of the reactionary armed forces and is a major center of military and bureaucratic corruption in the abuse and misuse of the scores of billions of pesos under the Conditional Cash Transfer Program. The corrupt practices and violent military and police actions are deceptively called peace and development operations.###

Prof. Jose Maria Sison
NDFP Chief Political Consultant

NDFP Condemns Illegal Arrest of NDFP Consultant Maria Concepcion “Concha” Araneta-Bocala

/by
2 August 2015
NDFP CONDEMNS ILLEGAL ARREST OF NDFP CONSULTANT MARIA CONCEPCION “CONCHA” ARANETA-BOCALA
The National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP) condemns in the strongest terms the illegal arrest of NDFP Consultant Maria Concepcion “Concha” Araneta-Bocala.
She is a peace consultant of the NDFP for the Visayas. She has been issued Document of Identification No. ND978245 under assumed name Remi Estrella. Her illegal arrest is another flagrant violation of the Joint Agreement on Safety and Immunity Guarantees (JASIG). The Aquino regime is answerable for this shameful disrespect for its solemn obligation to abide by a binding peace agreement. Therefore, the NDFP demands the immediate release of NDFP Consultant Concha Araneta Bocala.
We likewise vigorously condemn the awarding of a bounty of P 7.8 Million based on the DND/DILG Joint Order No. 14-2012 of November 12, 2012 listing alleged “235 wanted communists” with an updated bounty on their  heads of P 466.88 Million. DILG Secretary Mar Roxas and DND Secretary Voltaire Gazmin must be held accountable for this, together with President Aquino. This Joint Order is a veritable Order of Battle, a gross violation of the JASIG, the Comprehensive Agreement on Respect for Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law (CARHRIHL) and International Law.
As past experience has shown, the revolutionary movement is able to replace arrested leaders and comrades, and continue the revolutionary struggle. Those arrested have trained many others to take up the responsibilities of carrying forward the struggle for national and social revolution.
Qualified lawyers and others (doctors, etc.) will surely offer their assistance to NDFP Consultant Maria Concepcion “Concha” Araneta-Bocala and whoever may have been arrestesd with her.
She had been already involved in peace talks way back in 1986/87 during the Corazon Aquino regime. She is truly a highly valued peace consultant of the NDFP.
LUIS G. JALANDONI