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“It cannot simply be that the military’s account is accepted at face value when there are witnesses and evidence pointing to a different truth. What happened in Toboso must be investigated clearly and impartially."
"They can cut all the flowers, but they cannot stop spring from coming. They cannot stop the reckoning of the people they have starved, displaced, and killed."
“What they called an ‘interview’ was actually an interrogation, with death threats.”
“These arrests and the filing of fabricated charges expose the worsening climate of tyranny, repression, and impunity under the Marcos Jr. regime, continuing the same pattern of repression seen under the previous administration of Rodrigo Duterte.”
Under the Joint Agreement on Safety and Immunity Guarantees (JASIG) signed by the Philippine government and the NDFP in 1995, peace consultants like Ariel Badiang should be protected.
Karapatan flagged the military offensives of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) as an overkill. At least four battalions were deployed, with an average size of at least 500 soldiers per battalion under the control of 203rd Infantry Brigade.
“These heinous acts constitute a blatant violation of International Humanitarian Law (IHL) and grave child rights violations identified by the United nations (UN) Security Council, affront to the fundamental rights of the children and youth, who deserve protection rather than victimization, especially in times of conflict,” CRC said in a statement.
“Although Tatay Pepe was able to identify that the remains in Dimatulac Funeral Homes were his daughter’s, both the Roxas police and 4th IBPA are making things hard on him for no discernible reason,” human rights watchdog Karapatan Southern Tagalog said in a statement. “They are miring Tatay Pepe through documents and bureaucracy, despite the law clearly stating what considerations and rights should be given to indigenous people.”
Ronilo Villanueva is a coconut farmer who was found by elements of the 85th Infantry Battalion while out processing copra. Tanggol Quezon said Villanueva was shot on the knee and stomach before he was arrested on unknown charges. Another farmer named Genero was also arrested, according to eyewitness accounts.
“These executive orders and the NHRAP are desperate attempts by the Marcos regime to cover up its sordid human rights record. These are hypocritical actions while it continues to implement policies that infringe on Filipinos' basic rights and freedoms and wantonly violate IHL," said Karapatan Secretary General Cristina Palabay.
"Ignoring this reality would be counterproductive and will only prolong the entire process and open it to manipulation by the Duterte camp, besides prolonging the agony of the families of victims who have long been seeking justice for their loved ones,” Cristina Palabay said in a statement.
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