Politics soils probe of death squads

FATHER Amado Picardal, who’s been fighting for the last 10 years to put a stop to summary executions here, should have been ecstatic at the arrival of hundreds of students at the launching early this month of “You Can Die Anytime,” a book published by the New York-based Human Rights Watch that details the operations of the Davao Death Squad (DDS), supposedly a vigilante group.

But he wasn’t happy. He was instead alarmed. His biggest fear might be coming true – that politics was starting to destroy a 10-year crusade against the murderous rampage of what continues to be faceless vigilantes.

Nothing was unusual about some 100 students of the University of Southeastern Philippines coming to the book launching at the Ateneo de Davao University, except that they were all scholars of Speaker Prospero Nograles.

They had been told to attend the launching and a forum on human rights.

Supporters of Nograles came along, wearing blue shirts with the Speaker’s name printed on them.

Human rights advocates saw the connection. It explained why the group of students was now relentlessly vocal on summary killings in the city, which has been blamed for the deaths of more than 900 suspected petty criminals, many of them barely in their teens.

Nograles’ political arch-rival, Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte, has repeatedly denied involvement in the DDS.

“Yes, there are killings,” he had told the Commission on Human Rights [CHR] at the start of its investigation of the DDS in March, “but summary killings – I do not know.”

“If there is an iota of evidence that we are involved in the killings, I will submit to you, at the end of the day, my resignation as city mayor of Davao, especially in the matter of the killings of minors,” Duterte had said.

Nograles, who is on his third and final term as lawmaker, is expected to run for mayor of Davao City next year against Duterte’s daughter Sara, who is the city’s vice mayor.

Duterte may seek a congressional seat and run against Nograles’ son and chief of staff, Karlo.

‘Politically motivated’

Since the CHR conducted its investigation – concluding that the killing machine is being oiled by powerful city politicians – not a few Davaoeños thought that someone big was backing the agency.

People close to Duterte, including his daughter, saw politics behind the investigation.

CHR Chair Leila de Lima expressed disgust over the insinuations.

“I don’t like it. I categorically deny the claims that our investigation on the DDS operations is politically motivated and backed by Nograles. We are only doing this in pursuance of our mandate. All we want is to get to the bottom of this,” she said.

Nograles branded the talk as political black propaganda.

“We will get to the bottom of this as soon as possible. Looks like black propaganda because I have been out of the country all this time,” he said.

Balo complaint

Just last week, a detainee at the Panabo City jail filed criminal charges against Nograles, De Lima and several high-ranking police officers for taking him out of jail without a court order on July 6.

Jonathan Balo, who was suspected of killing a policeman in the Garden City of Samal in 2005, said in a sworn statement that he was “delivered from jail, bribed and intimidated, for [the] purpose of extorting a confession and obtain[ing] some information from him.”

Balo said he was brought to a firing range in Davao City, where he was asked to pinpoint the site of mass graves of supposed DDS victims.

One of those who interrogated him asked if he was Danny Balo. He said he was not.

[Danny Balo, according to sources, was a suspect in the killing of Jerry Noya on January 1 in Punta Dumalag in Davao City. Noya was an area coordinator of Duterte’s local political party, Hugpong sa Tawong Lungsod.]

Exhumation

Five days after the “wrong” Balo was brought out of jail, De Lima flew to Davao City to oversee the exhumation of remains in two graves inside the firing range owned by Bienvenido Laud, a retired policeman and elder brother of Loreto Laud, barangay (village) chairperson of Maa and known Nograles ally.

The CHR said the remains were those of victims of the DDS. De Lima said the discovery of the graves was made possible by a former DDS insider, one of the witnesses that the commission would use in filing charges against officials involved in the killings.

Balo said the name of Nograles was dropped by his police escorts on their way to Davao City. One of them, the inmate said, told him that if he joined and cooperated with them, Nograles will take care of him, especially in resolving his case.

At the firing range, Balo said, the police officers made phone calls to someone they called Madam De Lima.

The CHR chief denied having made any request to the police to take Balo. “I am against any irregularities … If we needed him in our investigations, it would have been us who went to see him,” De Lima said.

“I am surprised why I am being involved in this case, but at the same time, I am not surprised because I know, given the sensitivity of our investigation, a demolition job is expected,” she added, without elaborating. –Jeffrey M. Tupas, Philippine Daily Inquirer