Human Rights

MANILA, Philippines — Whatever the figure, the number of killings of journalists and leftist activists in the Philippines is “distressing,” and President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo should persuade the Armed Forces to “acknowledge” the fact and conduct a “genuine” investigation, United Nations Special Rapporteur Philip Alston said Wednesday.

MANILA, Philippines — The defense and military establishments on Wednesday chose silence vis-à-vis the initial findings of United Nations Special Rapporteur Philip Alston, but Justice Secretary Raul Gonzalez came out with guns blazing.

MANILA, Philippines — Former Supreme Court Justice Jose Melo Wednesday said he was standing by the finding of the fact-finding commission on extrajudicial killings that certain military officials should be held accountable by virtue of “command responsibility.”

THE Armed Forces on Wednesday insisted that the hundreds of murders of activists are products of an ongoing purge within the ranks of the communist underground movement.

Extrajudicial killings in the country will not stop unless Malacañang and the Armed Forces acknowledge the reality of rights violations and reevaluate their counterinsurgency strategy, the UN special rapporteur warned on Wednesday.

The government offered yesterday protection to victims of atrocities and harassment from the New People’s Army (NPA) and their front party-list organizations to encourage them to come out and testify against these leftist groups. The same protection was offered to families of these victims.

MANILA, Philippines — The Supreme Court will be creating special courts to handle cases involving extrajudicial killings, Chief Justice Reynato Puno said.

The Philippine National Police and the Armed Forces have found an ally in a former communist rebel, who is now a pro-democracy advocate.