Rights groups used as Red fronts — Remonde

Malacañang accused human rights groups of being used as fronts for the local communist movement while disputing a new report of United Nations Special Rapporteur Philip Alston stating that human rights violations continue in the country mainly as a result of President Arroyo’s order for the military to neutralize the communist movement in the country.

The Palace also flaunted yesterday the belated government plan to put up a P25-million fund for information on those believed to have committed human rights violations and to provide protection for witnesses as proof that the Arroyo administration is taking concrete steps to curb extra-judicial killings.

The fund would go to those “who provide information that foils political assassination attempts or leads to their solution, especially the identification of their masterminds,” according to Mrs. Arroyo.

The communist movement uses all means to destroy the government, including the use of front organizations like human rights group, Press Secretary Cerge Remonde said.

Alston stated in the report that the military is using Mrs. Arroyo’s message to the Armed Forces to end the communist insurgency by 2010 as justification in tagging political and civil society organizations as fronts for the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) and its armed wing, the New People’s Army (NPA).

Remonde said among the concrete measures demonstrating the President’s sincerity and determination to solve human rights

violations was the offer of reward for identifying human rights violators and protection of witnesses through the P25 million fund with the allies of the administration committing to contribute to the fund and this commitment has been ensured with the good intentions of the President.

Remonde said “insurgency is a menace and in the process the President and the leadership, with due respect to human rights, will do everything to put an end to it.”

The government represented by Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita recently attended the UN Human Rights conference in Geneva, Switzerland and presented to the forum the supposed efforts of the Arroyo administration to protect human rights protection, Remonde said.

Ermita said that the UN conference has taken strong interest on the anti-torture laws and the government had to complete its report on the status of pending anti-torture law.

Farmers and fisherfolk activists camping by the gate of the House of Representatives for 27 days said Saturday the follow-up report of Alston on extra-judicial killings in the country merits the expulsion of Bantay party-list Rep. Jovito Palparan from the Congress.

In their joint statement, the left-leaning fisherfolk alliance Pambansang Lakas ng Kilusang Mamamalakaya ng Pilipinas (Pamalakaya), the peasant group Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas (KMP), the agricultural labor group Unyon ng Mga Manggagawa sa Agrikultura (UMA) and the women peasant federation Amihan said Speaker Prospero Nograles should lead a move that will remove Palparan from the House of Representatives based on the follow up report of the UN special rapporteur on extra-judicial killings.

According to Alston’s follow up report, the Arroyo government had failed to apply the principle of command responsibility in the purported human rights violations by agents of the state, and one of the major proofs was the supposed appointment of Palparan to the Dangerous Drug Board (DDB) and his entry to Congress as party-list lawmaker.

In a related development, Makati Mayor and United Opposition (UNO) president Jejomar Binay yesterday said he does not see the end of political killings under the Arroyo administration, and instead sees its resurgence as protests against her term extension increase.

“The Arroyo administration is more intent on silencing opposition rather than observing human rights,” he said, adding that its policy against political killings is “all talk and no action.”

Binay was reacting to the second report of the United Nations rapporteur on human rights saying that the Arroyo administration has failed to institutionalize reforms needed to end political killings.

The opposition leader said all the so-called policy statements condemning political killings, even the establishment of a multi-million reward fund, are for the consumption of international groups and foreign governments who have raised their concern over the state of human rights under the Arroyo government.

“Domestically, it’s a different policy altogether,” he said.

In fact, Binay said Mrs. Arroyo’s statement proposing the setting up a fund to reward information to solve political killings was intended to soften the impact of the second report of Philip Alston.

“Again, the so-called reward fund proposal is all talk and no action,” he said.

In contrast, the Arroyo government’s policy on human rights is best expressed by the plan of former Gen. and now party-list representative Jovito Palparan to revive the outdated Anti-Subversion Law.

“The Palparan proposal is more reflective of the Arroyo administration’s real policy in dealing with critics, and I would not be surprised if it gains the support of Arroyo allies in Congress,” he said.

In his report, Alston also observed that the number of political killings decreased after the Arroyo administration issued official statements condemning extrajudicial killings.

Binay said this only shows that the administration “exerts influence” over those behind the killings of political activists and journalists.

“The fact that the number of political killings decreased after Mrs. Arroyo issued policy statements against extra-judicial killings mean only one thing: her administration can influence the forces behind the killings,” he said.

But the opposition leader noted that the number of killings only decreased and did not stop.

“If the administration can influence the people behind these killings, then it should have no trouble ordering an end to the killings, but it is apparent that is has no intention to do that,” he said.

Manila Auxiliary Bishop Broderick Pabillo said the P25 million fund to reward informants who could help solve political killings will never have much impact.

Pabillo, who heads the National Secretariat for Social Action- Justice and Peace of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP), said cash reward is not an effective way to reduce or cut crimes.

“The government has got the wrong strategy. Political will and not money is more needed to solve the wave of political killings in the country,” he said.

The bishop said allocating a special fund for such campaign is irrelevant because the duty, primarily, falls on the Philippine National Police (PNP).

“The public is paying for their salaries and it’s their obligation to investigate, make arrests and bring to court those who are behind these extrajudicial killings,” he said.

Mrs. Arroyo has been criticized for the series of killings, for which she has been blamed for either condoning the attack or not doing enough to stop them.

Remonde said that the proposed revival of the Republic Act 170o otherwise known as “The Anti-subversion Law” being adopted by Palparan, which the Senate committee on justice headed by Sen. Chiz Escudero declared “a great leap backward,” has to be defended in Congress.

“Ultimately the passage of this bill will depend on the concerned politicians supporting Palparan’s proposal,” he noted.

Remonde also reminded the oppositors to the proposed bill of Palparan that the new congressman won his seat through the High Court decision on party list which increased the number of seats of party list representatives to 55 from previously 23 seats.

Remonde said that Palparan has the same right and prerogative as any congressman. –Riza Recio, Charlie V. Manalo, Daily Tribune