OVERALL
RESULTS OF FIND’S SEARCH AND DOCUMENTATION WORK OVER THE PAST 17 ½
YEARS, NOVEMBER 1985-MAY 24, 2003
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Involuntary
disappearance cases in the Philippines are parts of a worldwide phenomenon.
For more than three decades now, this has been happening in more than
60 countries. Since involuntary disappearance is not considered a crime
in Philippine laws, the 14 cases presently filed in court are lodged as
kidnapping, murder or serious illegal detention or a combination of the
last two cases. Calling the crime by its correct name is one of the important
provisions of House Bill 1913 entitled, An Act Penalizing Enforced or
Involuntary Disappearances and For Other Purposes recently filed in the
Lower House by Hon. Krisel Lagman-Luistro. Presently, FIND is lobbying
other House Representatives as well as Senators to co-author the bill. |
At
this point, FIND is glad to come out with the overall results of its search
and documentation work over the past almost 17 years.
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Table
1. Statistics on disappearance in the Philippines by regime and case status.
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As
of MAY 24, 2003 there are 1,633 cases of disappearance documented by FIND
nationwide. Of this, 1,075 are still missing, 326 surfaced alive and 232
surfaced dead. Marcos regime registered the highest number of disappearance
cases with 851, Aquino with 607, Ramos with 87, Estrada with 58 and Arroyo
with 31.
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*
NOTE: This (1,846) is the number of reported disappearance cases received
by FIND either from contacts, allies, networks, and media. So far only
1,634 have been documented.
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Table
2. Statistics on disappearance by Gender
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Of
the 1,633 victims of disappearance, 159 are females and the rest are males.
Table
3. Statistical Table on Disappearance by Sector
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The
sectoral group that has the highest number of victims of disappearance is the
farmers group with 769 followed by the workers group with 244 and the rest follows.
Statistical
Graph On Disappearance By Suspected Perpetrators
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The Military in general registered the highest number of involvement in disappearance
cases with 466 followed by the military’s Philippine Army with 366, third
is the defunct PC/INP/MetroCom with 225 and Marcos paramilitary group ICHDF
with 145.
The
whole Armed Forces of the Philippines (Army, Marines, MIG, ISAFP, Military’s
Scout Rangers, RSAFP) tallied with 890 involvements in disappearance cases.
* NOTE: Above acronyms in full:
•
PNP – Philippine National Police
• CAFGU – Citizen Armed Forces Geographical Unit
• NBI – National Bureau of Investigation
• ICHDF – Integrated Civilian Home Defense Force
• IG – Intelligence Group
• ISAFP – Intelligence Service of the Armed Forces of the Phil.
• MIG – Military Intelligence Group
• PC – Philippine Constabulary
• INP – Integrated National Police
• METROCOM – Metro Command
• PA – Philippine Army
TABLE
4. REGIONAL DISTRIBUTION OF VICTIMS
OF DISAPPEARANCE
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STATISTICAL
GRAPH ON DISAPPEARANCE BY AGE BRACKET
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Majority of the victims of disappearance falls on the age bracket 16-25 years
old with 456(40.1%), followed by age bracket 26-35 years old with 372 (32.6%).
Note:
The oldest victim documented is 65 years old, while the youngest is 2 years
old.
STATISTICAL GRAPH ON NUMBER OF DISAPPEARANCE
CASES PER YEAR |
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The
years 1983 to 1985 recorded the highest number of incidents of disappearance
cases followed by years 1987 to 1989. 1983-1985 was the peak of the campaign
against Marcos dictatorship. 1987-1989 was the period of Total War Policy of
Corazon Aquino regime against insurgents.
STATISTICAL
GRAPH ON DISAPPEARANCE BY CASE STATUS |
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Of the total 1,633 documented cases of disappearance in the Philippines, 1,075
are still missing, 326 have surfaced alive and 232 have surfaced dead.
Table
5. REGIONAL DISTRIBUTION OF NUMBER OF EXHUMED VICTIMS
OF INVOLUNTARY DISAPPEARANCE |
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As MAY 19, 2003 there are 66 remains of involuntary disappearance exhumed by
FIND nationwide.
TABLE
6. TOTAL NUMBER OF EXHUMED VICTIMS PER REGIME. |
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Of
the total 66 exhumed remains, 47 disappeared during the Marcos regime and 19
from the Aquino regime.
A
forensic finding reveals that among 66 (95%) exhumed victim’s suffered/died
from gunshot wounds.
STATISTICAL
GRAPH ON REPORTED CASES OF VICTIMS OF INVOLUNTARY DISAPPEARANCE IN THE
PHILIPPINES BY REGIME |
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STATISTICAL
GRAPH ON THE REGIONAL DISTRIBUTION OF VICTIMS OF INVOLUNTARY DISAPPEARANCE |
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