Katipunan Road in the town of Labangon, Cebu province
is a usually busy street, with endless rows of vehicles treading along its
slender, cemented path like like passing salmons in a narrow stream.
Situated five kilometers away from the provincial capital, Katipunan could
well be described as the epitome of life in the southern suburbs - busy,
noisy and feisty, albeit unbereft of that genial rustic element that is so
common in this part of the Philippines. Yet on the 11th of July 1985, this
same stretch of land known for its clatter and humdrum suddenly fell
silent, exuding a sense of the funereal as it huddled itself in its own
eerie quietude.
For at 9 o'clock in the morning, a white Ford Cortina
with a hard black top appeared along Katipunan, with two motorcycles
trailing closely behind. As the small caravan halted in a nearby
Sing-Along, armed men in civilian clothes alighted from the vehicles,
donning assault rifles and hand-held radios. Around 3:45 in the afternoon,
a man on blue motorcycle was noticed approaching Cabarrubias Street from
Katipunan Road At that precise moment, the white Cortina swung around,
blocking its path. As the two other motorcycle came from behind to
complete the entrapment, armed hooligans surrounded the victim and cocked
their M-16s, pointing their deadly nozzles at the surprised motorcyclist.
Before shoving him inside the car, one of the assailants seized the man's
bag and removed his crash helmet, revealing the muffled face of Fr. Rudy
Romano - Redemptorist priest and anti-Marcos oppositionist. Shouting "Ang
akong motor" (My motorcycle), Fr. Rudy beamed a confident smile, as he
saw a number of bystanders witnessing his arrest. As it later turned out,
that was to be the last strand of hope that was to be gleaned from him by
the public eye.
Fifteen years and four administration later, Fr. Rudy
remains officially missing; and neither his fate nor his whereabouts has
been divulged by the military, by his abductors or by the intelligence
community. Even up to this time, his disappearance has generated endless
questions and speculations, turning a once-frantic search for a missing
person into a motivating force for national introspection. As a member of
the Catholic clergy and respected leader of the Task Force Detainees of
the Philippines (TFDP), Father Rudy has since become a poignant symbol for
all desaparecidos and a rallying icon for both defenders and
advocates of civil liberties and human rights.
Used initially as a political tactic to silence the
opposition against the late strongman Ferdinand Marcos, involuntary
disappearance has since become the underlying legacy of the latter's
corrupt administration. Starting with the abduction of militant student
leader Charlie del Rosario in 1971, the number of disappeared has now
exceeded the thousand-mark, and is expected to increase gradually for an
indefinite period of time.
While disappearances may have been perpetrated under an
erstwhile democratic regime, the declaration of Martial Law in 1972
clearly gave the military and other security agencies the legal cover in
their punitive operations. Armed with near carte blanche authority,
State agents arrested suspected dissidents at will, resulting in gross
human rights violations including 759 reported cases of involuntary
disappearance under the incumbency of then-President Marcos.
The Usual Suspects
Viewed from any angle, it is clear that the abductions
were government reactions to the growing insurgency in both the urban
centers and countryside. Faced with multiple armed challenges from the
communist New People's Army (NPA) to the separatist Moro National
Liberation Front (MNLF) and its various splinter groups, the government
used disappearances to cajole the population and weed out potential rebels
and sympathizers. In most instances, the escalation of armed conflicts is
accompanied by intensified perpetration of abductions and disappearances,
turning a savage guerilla war into a government campaign against its own
people.
Consequently, a large portion of those who disappeared
were or had been members of legally constituted sectoral and human rights
organizations which the military claims to have direct links with the
leftist underground or are sympathetic with communist cause. Among the
targeted groups are peasant /farmer organizations like Kilusang
Magbubukid ng Pilipinas (KMU) / Peasant Movement of the Philippines)
and labor unions such as the Kilusang Mayo Uno (KMU) May One Movement).
Other victims include ordinary citizens from all sectors of society who
have been very critical of government policy and have voiced their
criticisms in non-violent manner.
In recent years, the military has utilized more
sophisticated means of emasculating the opposition - employing vigilante
groups, militia units and paramilitary forces in their counter-insurgency
operations. They have also devised paralegal means to corrode and weaken
the insurgency's mass base by targeting open or legal non-governmental
organizations suspected of being front groups for the CPP-NPA. Once
identified, members of the said NGOs are subsequently subjected to
stigmatization and "red-labeling", thus turning them into legitimate
targets by counter-operatives. Most often than not, they become the
object of constant harassment and intimidation, while others become
targets of physical abuse. In a majority of these cases, such practices
are carried out by poorly trained and ill-disciplined members of the
paramilitary. Though in total violation of their rules of engagement,
abductions and other abuses have been committed with blind toleration (if
not outright sanction) from military commanders, making human rights
violations an intrinsic element in
government's anti-insurgency operation.
Based on existing records, the institutions that have
been commonly implicated in such systematic wrong-doing are the Armed
Forces of the Philippines (AFP), the Philippine National Police (PNP), the
now-defunct Philippine Constabulary (PC) and members of various militia
organizations such as the Citizens' Armed Forces Geographical Unit (CAFGUs)
and the Marcos-era Citizens Home Defense Forces (CHDF).
The pattern of involvement was even verified by the
United nations Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearance (UNWGEID)
through a report that was released in 1991. In the said document, the
Group asserted that, "...most cases of disappearances are to be ascribed
to members of the military, the police and vigilante groups...the
government CAFGUs and, to a lesser extent, civilian volunteer groups
should be added." This was further corroborated in a separate study
conducted by Amnesty International, which concluded that in most cases,
victims who subsequently "reappeared" were held in custody by either
military or police authorities from a period of one week to two months.
Poetic In-justice
Ironically, despite the past and present commission of
enforced disappearances, the Philippines itself has been a party to a
number of international treaties and agreements designed to promote and
protect basic human rights. The most prominent is the United Nations
Declaration of Human Rights, adopted by the United Nations General
Assemble on on December 10, 1948 and to which the Philippines in one of
the first signatories.
The country was also a signatory to the International
Covenant on Civil and Political Rights which states, among other things,
that "all persons shall not be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman
or degrading treatment or punishment" (Article 7). It also stipulates that
"no one shall be deprived of his liberty except on such grounds and in
accordance with such procedure as are established by law" (Article 9). The
Covenant further guarantees that "anyone who has been the victim of
unlawful arrest or detention shall have an enforceable right to
compensation" and that "everyone shall have the right to recognition
everywhere as a person before the law" (Article 16).
It did not even oppose the adoption of the UN
Declaration on the Protection of All Persons from Enforced or Involuntary
Disappearances when it was presented to the UN General Assembly on
December 18, 1992. Because of its stance, the government is thus bound to
"take effective legislative, administrative, judicial and other measures
to prevent and terminate enforced or involuntary disappearance in any
territory under its jurisdiction" as stipulated in Article III. Article
XIV also mandates that those suspected of perpetrating an enforced
disappearance shall "be brought before competent civil authorities of the
State for the purpose of prosecution and trial" and that "all States
should take any lawful and appropriate action available to them to bring
all persons presumed responsible for an act of enforced disappearance
found to be within their jurisdiction or within their control, to
justice."
In December of last year, the country also ratified the
Rome Statute Establishing the International Criminal Court - a judicial
body under the auspices of the United Nations which has the power to hear
and decide cases involving genocide, war crimes, crimes against humanity,
aggression and enforced or involuntary disappearances which have been
committed within the territory of the State parties.
Given these precedents, the Philippine government
therefore has rescinded on its international obligations, signing
documents left and right only to pay lip service later on.
One Step-Forward, Two Steps Backward
Though the Marcos regime has become synonymous with
human rights violations, the incidence of disappearances has not been
mitigated even after his ouster from power and the subsequent restoration
of democratic rule. Under his immediate successors Corazon Aquino for
example, the number reported cases of involuntary disappearances has
reached 830, far exceeding the levels during the Martial Law period. And
while involuntary disappearances have markedly declined in recent years,
with 66 cases recorded during Ramos's incumbency and with at least 27
instances committed under the Estrada administration, the total number of
1,682 is still relatively high within the context of the Asian region.
Moreover, of these figures, only 35 have so far been exhumed while a very
small number have resurfaced alive. The fate of the rest, however, remains
uncertain.
To remedy the situation, then President Corazon Aquino
formed the Presidential Commission on Human Rights (PCHR) shortly after
her assumption to power in 1986 to investigate various cases of violations
involving political rights. Headed by well-respected Senator and street
parliamentarian the late Jose "Pepe" Diokno, the PCHR was transformed into
an independent quasi-judicial constitutional body in 1987. Dubbed as the
Commission on Human Rights (CHR) and with 13 regional offices through out
the country, its expanded mandate includes civil, economic and
socio-cultural rights.
Despite its noble intentions however, the Commission
has been hampered by severe institutional limitations. While it may
investigate cases of human rights violations and recommend the same to the
Department of Justice (DOJ) or to the Office of the Ombudsman, the CHR
lacks any prosecutory power of its own. Because of this impediment, most
witnesses are wary of identifying themselves, since they are not given the
proper protection that can only be accorded by a proper court of law.
This however, does not mean that reforms and
improvements are in the offing. Under the Ramos administration, a
Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) was singed between the Justice Department
and the Commission on Human Rights allowing the latter to serve as a
collaborating counsel along with DOJ lawyers in the prosecution of human
rights -related cases. Several moves in Congress have also been made which
seek to grant prosecutory powers to CHR. To further beef up these efforts,
former President Ramos also formed, through an executive order the "Task
Force Disappearance". Spearheaded by the CHR, the Task Force includes the
DOJ, the PNP, the AFP and various human rights NGOs. The undertaking,
however, proved nothing. this, according to most NGOs, was due to the fact
that the AFP and PNP were part of the initiative, which were the most
notorious institutions suspected of committing human rights violations.
Yet, despite its lack of success, parallel efforts were
also made at the legislative department, with Senator Sergio Osmeņa III
and Representative Bonifacio Gillego filing a resolution calling on the
Philippine government to ratify the UN Declaration on the Protection of
All Persons from Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances. Another
resolution was also submitted supporting Amnesty International's 14 Point
Program for the Prevention of "Disappearances". These measures however,
were merely passed by the committee and were not approved by the plenary.
More so, Congress through the initiative of AFAD
Chairperson Edcel C. Lagman, in 1993 had allocated P4 million ($153,000)
for the welfare and rehabilitation of families affected by involuntary
disappearances as well as the surviving victims. This was then increased
to P5 million ($193,000) in subsequent annual budgets. This allocation
however is subject to a very stringent colatilla, with the burden of proof
placed squarely on the shoulders of the victims' families, most of whom
are deprived of the most basic access to the prescribed legal requirements
that would prove both the disappearance and their level of kinship with
the disappeared.
Civil society groups have also made significant
contributions in the over-all effort. The Families of Victims of
Involuntary Disappearances (FIND) for example, has been active in
data-gathering and in its numerous support programs. it also involved in
organizing forensic search missions in order to locate, identify and
recover the remains of the dead desaparecidos. Unfortunately, its
work has also been met by severe difficulties. Most often, witnesses are
fearful of coming out in the open lest they suffer from possible reprisal
from those responsible for the atrocities. There were also cases wherein
the victim's remains were removed from the burial site shortly before
exhumation.
But what would probably the most difficult problem of
FIND and all other human rights groups is that until now, most
perpetrators remain unpunished. The extent of impunity in the Philippines
has been so great that it was even noted by the UNWGEID. From 1987 to 1990
for example, the CHR received 7,944 complaints of human rights violations.
of this number 1,509 cases were filed in court and only 11 cases yielded
punishment against the offenders. Furthermore in the 1998 Report of the
UNWGEID, the Philippine government sought the deletion of 49 cases in the
former's list of desaparecidos and another 350 cases to be reviewed
by the military - the very institution that was primarily involved in most
(if not all) of these abductions.
To make matters worse, only a small number of families
have so far benefited from financial assistance program given by
government (which approximately P10,000 or $200 per family). As of this
writing, approximately 300 families were given financial assistance and
more are still awaiting justice.
Uncanny Twist
The phenomenon of involuntary disappearance however,
had a very uncanny twist with the election of Joseph Ejercito Estrada to
the presidency in 1998. A former movie actor turned politician, Erap
(as he is called by most Filipinos) was able to successfully mix
presidential reverence with pop icon fanaticism - a trait that is so
common among the stars and bigwigs of the silverscreen. Turning his
legions of adorning fans into a solid electoral base, Estrada was able to
defeat other seasoned politicians though sheer imagery and a populist dose
of pro-poor rhetoric, charging his campaign with the slogan "Erap Para
sa Mahirap (Erap for the Poor)".
Yet even before the start of the traditional 100-day
honeymoon between the newly elected Chief Executive and Philippine media,
Estrada was already embroiled in an ugly controversy, after giving the
go-signal for the burial of former President Marcos at the Libingan ng
mga Bayani (Heroes' Grave). Angering and galvanizing activists, civil
society groups and the human rights victims of the former dictator, Erap
soon relented after a series of mass actions and demonstrations in the
capital.
A year later, the Estrada government was again at
loggerheads with various progressive groups when Malacaņang tried to amend
the Constitution to allow foreign corporations to own land and media
establishments in the Philippines. Dubbed as CONCORD (Constitutional
Corrections for Reform and Development), the project was subsequently put
to the backburner after waves of protests and dipping presidential
popularity.
But learning his bag of tricks from the movie industry,
Erap soon made a big production a la Robert de Niro's Wag the Dog
to arrest his plunging approval rating. Using the breakdown of the
on-going peace-talks with the secessionist Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF)
as a justification, Estrada soon launched an all-out military offensive in
Mindanao, killing scores of people and damaging lives and property worth
millions. After overrunning the main rebel base Camp Abubakar, the
President and his hordes celebrated their victory by treating themselves
to a sumptuous feast of beer and lechon (roasted pork) as television
cameras recorded their gluttonous glee, to the consternation of civil
society leaders and to the indignation of the Muslim community.
though his punitive actions have nonetheless earned for
him a few popularity points, these were soon put to naught however with
the jueteng-gate scandal in October 2000, courtesy of former
presidential booze and Ilocos Sur Governor Luis "Chavit" Singson. Claiming
that the President has received P200 million in payola money from illegal
numbers game, Singson's expose triggered a series of demonstrations
demanding Estrada's resignation and impeachment trial that was televised
live from the Senate, transforming an otherwise esoteric legal proceeding
into the nation's leading telenovela.
It was under these circumstances that most celebrated
case of involuntary disappearance under the Estrada administration was
carried out, presumably by operatives of the Philippine National Police
(PNP) and the Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Task Force (PAOCTF). A
known PR Consultant and an estranged friend of Estrada, Salvador "Bubby"
Dacer and his driver Emmanuel Corbito were abducted on November 24, just
13 days prior to the formal opening of the impeachment trial, as he was
allegedly on the way to meet Erap's predecessor Fidel Ramos and hand over
vital documents that would prove the President's guilt. Though their
vehicle was soon found at the foot of a ravine in Maragondon, Cavite three
days after the abduction, their whereabouts remain a mystery up to this
day.
After the Rndgame: Qou Vadis?
While many have expected that the impeachment trial
would go until the 12th of February, no one foresaw that the entire
proceeding would come to an abrupt end on January 16, after the
administration-dominated Senate disallowed the opening of a sealed
enveloped allegedly containing bank records showing that Estrada had
indeed amassed P3.3 billion in a secrete account with Equitable PCI
Bank. With the populace suddenly losing confidence in the impeachment
proceedings, they spontaneously took to the streets that led to the Second
People Power Revolution.
As the crowd in EDSA (the site of the first People
Power Revolution in 1986) reached more than a million plus, with
simultaneous protest movements through out the country, the morale and
confidence of the military in their Commander-in-Chief began to
deteriorate, leading the Armed Forces top to brass to declare their
withdrawal of support to the administration on January19. By the following
day, Estrada left Malacaņang and his Vice-President and former
presidential daughter Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo was sworn in as the
country's 14th President in an atmosphere reminiscent of Marcos' fall from
power 15 years ago.
yet, as the euphoria dies down the sense of
revolutionary upsurge begins to ebb away, the new government would have to
go to work and face the same pressing concerns that have been left in
total disarray by the previous administration. With 1,682 cases of
disappearances at the disposal of the courts, the petite, female
President would have to dig deep into the past in order to make a fresh
new start. For it would take earnestness , a sense of urgency and
doggedness in the search for justice and truth, more that a photogenic
face and a near reverent surname, to vanquish the poltergeists of the
past. Otherwise, the eerie silence that has since descended upon
Katipunan Road will remain forever oblivious to din and shouts of a
jubilant mob gathered at a stretch of cement and dirt called EDSA.
