In 2002, the Gloria Macapagal Arroyo regime started the implementation of Oplan Bantay Laya (Operation Freedom Watch). The objective of this counter-insurgency plan is to crush the revolutionary Communist Party of the Philippines- New Peoples Army- National Democratic Front of the Philippines(CPP -NPA-NDFP) and the Muslim secessionist groups in order to address the armed conflict in the Philippine countrysides.

Oplan Bantay Laya is a replication of earlier counter-insurgency programs like the Oplan Katatagan of the Marcos administration during the 1980s, Oplan Lambat-Bitag I and II of the Aquino administration, Oplan Lambat-Bitag III and IV of the Ramos government, and Oplan Balangai of the Estrada administration. All of these have resulted in numerous cases of violations of human rights and international humanitarian laws.

The striking difference from the past programs is how it defines “the enemy”.

Oplan Bantay Laya equates the revolutionary organizations of the CPP-NPA-NDFP with what it calls “sectoral front organizations”. The Armed Forces of the Philippines-produced slide presentation “Knowing the Enemy” and the book “Trinity of War” identified the legal militant and progressive organizations as the front organizations. It also included media groups such as the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism (PCIJ) and religious organizations such as the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) and the Association of Major Religious Superiors in the Philippines (AMRSP). The oplan’s intelligence operations are focused on these “sectoral front organizations” and it treats these organizations as military targets subject to “neutralization” – its euphemism for killing.

From January 2001, when Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo assumed the presidency to December 31, 2006, the results of this program have been chilling.

The Karapatan National Documentation Committee has reported 208 enforced disappearances and 818 victims of extrajudicial killings. 359 of those who were killed are members and leaders of militant and progressive organizations critical against the policies of the Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo regime such as as Bayan Muna, AnakPawis, Gabriela Women’s Party, Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (BAYAN), Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas (KMP), Kilusang Mayo Uno (KMU), Karapatan and other Bayan member-organizations like the Cordillera Peoples Alliance.

In 2006 alone – 207 have been killed, the last victim being Rodolfo “Pong” Alvarado – leader of Bayan Muna (BM or People First) – in Ligao City, Albay who was assassinated last December 31, 2006.

96 of the extrajudicial killing victims are indigenous peoples. 36 are from the Cordillera.

All of the victims are unarmed civilians contrary to the Task Force Usig reports and the claims of General Hermogenes Esperon that most of the victims were killed in legitimate armed encounters with the AFP.

None of the cases have been solved up to this day.

The extrajudicial killings are also explained by the government as the handiwork of the CPP-NPA-NDFP or the “sectoral front organizations” as part of their projection on who the enemies of the state or the people are and to wash its hands of its crimes.

But the evidences and patterns drawn from these cases tell otherwise.

We, the Cordillera Human Rights Alliance (CHRA) and the Ilocos Human Rights Advocates (IHRA), both chapters of Karapatan, continue to hold the Gloria Macapagal Arroyo regime responsible for these grave human rights violations.

It is the regime who has the motive and the means to execute a plan that has taken away the lives of the 818 victims.

In this light, we put forward the updates in the case of Jose “Pepe” Manegdeg III, coordinator of the Rural Missionaries of the Philippines for Ilocos and Cordillera who was summarily executed last November 28, 2005 in Barangay Apatot, San Esteban, Ilocos Sur.

This December, in our preparation for the Permanent People’s Tribunal, we obtained a copy of the San Esteban PNP report naming a Captain Joel Castro of the 50th IBPA who was formerly assigned with Military Intelligence Company (MICO) as the main suspect to the killing.

We commend and are deeply grateful for the courage of the people who have stated the facts crucial in the identification of the suspect. We also commend the Philippine National Police in San Esteban, Ilocos Sur for releasing the report. Their findings validate our earlier claim on who are responsible for the death of Pepe Manegdeg and clearly debunk the malicious Northern Luzon Commission (NOLCOM) special report released last November which stated that Pepe was set up and killed by the people he worked with who were tagged as top-ranking officers of the CPP.

The suspect should be presented by the Armed Forces of the Philippines and his commanding officers be held accountable, too, for the killing.

We strongly demand that protection be provided to the concerned people who have spoken to prevent any untoward incident that may compromise their safety and the investigation. If anything would happen to them, the police and the court should also hold the suspect and his principals liable for it.

With this update, we are given proof of who the real enemy behind the killings is.

The real enemy behind the killings is the select section of the Armed Forces of the Philippines and the Philippine National Police tasked to “neutralize” members and leaders of the people’s organizations they have tagged as “front organizations”. The real enemy behind the killings is the State that defines this program. This explains the culture of impunity imposed as these extrajudicial killings take place.

We demand for the speedy resolution of the case of Pepe Manegdeg with this update. We continue to demand for justice for Pepe and the more than 800 victims of extrajudicial killings.

We also strongly condemn the continuation of the Oplan Bantay Laya with Oplan Bantay Laya II and the release of P10 B worth of public money for it.

The militaristic solution to address the counter-insurgency problem has not been working in three decades and must be reviewed by the government. We push for the continuation of the peace negotiations between the GRP and the CPP-NPA-NDFP and the respect to the agreements like the Comprehensive Agreement on the Respect for Human Rights and International Humanitarian Laws (CARHRIHL) to address the armed conflict in the countrysides.

The basic human rights of the people should be respected.#

For reference:

Atty. Randy Kinaud
Secretary General
Cordillera Human Rights Alliance

Rod Tajon
Secretary General
Ilocos Human Rights Advocates