human rights forum 1 -...

1Human Rights FORUM

2 Human Rights FORUM

PHILIPPINE HUMAN RIGHTS INFORMATION CENTER

Editorial Board

NYMIA PIMENTEL-SIMBULAN DR. P.H.SONNY MELENCIOGINA DELA CRUZ

BERNARDO LARINEditor-in-Chief

JM VILLEROManaging Editor

ARNEL RIVALArt Director

EUGENE BACASMASIllustrator

The Human Rights Forumis published quarterly

by thePhilippine Human Rights

Information Center (PhilRights)with office address at

53-B Maliksi St. BarangayPinyahan, Quezon City

Telefax: 433-1714Tel. No.: 436-5686

E-mail:[email protected]: www.philrights.org

ISSN 0117-552-1

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NOTES ON THENBN-ZTE SCANDAL

By Percival Cendaña

Why are we not surprised?

HEALTHCARE UNDERLOCK AND KEY

By Candy Diez

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This publication is made possible through the support of the Embassy of Finland

The Philippine Human Rights Information Center (PhilRights) is the research and information center of thePhilippine Alliance of Human Advocates (PAHRA).

EMBASSY OF FINLANDManila

Dissecting the HospitalDetention Law

Disappearances Continue Without Let-upBy Mary Aileen Diez-Bacalso

Alamin ang Inyong mga KarapatanWrit of Amparo

War in MindanaoRenewed Offensive, Renewed CostBy Sitti Nur-Aina L. Jaji

Ang Barikada sa Pacquet, Kasibu Nueva VizcayaIsang Kwento ng Pakikibaka Laban sa Malakihang PagmiminaNi Emy Tapiru

Corporate Social Responsibility and the Mining IndustryIngraining people’s participation in mining communities through CSRBy Roel A. Andag

Sibuyan Island:People’s Resistance to Plunder Ends in DeathBy Rodne Galicha

Asean Charter Poses Difficult ChallengeRegional alliance takes tentative steps toward one day possiblyforming an economic and political unionBy Vitit Muntarbhorn

HR DIGEST

HR TRIVIA

FACTS AND FIGURES

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n EDITORYAL

Korapsyonpapel ni Pangulong Arroyo sa iskandalong ito.

Ang pinakahuling pumutok na insidente ng suhulan aymismong sa Malakanyang pa naganap at nakuha pa sa video angmga mambabatas at mga lokal na opisyal na lumalabas sa palasyoat tila mga batang may bitbit na mga ‘regalo.’ Ang mali lang ngmga namigay ng suhol, pati si Fr. Ed Panlilio na gobernador ngPampanga ay inabutan nila at ito ang siyang nagbunyag sanangyaring pamimigay ng pera matapos makipagpulong ngpangulo sa mga nasabing opisyal.

Sobra na nga sigurong nasanay sa ganitong kalakaran ang mganasa pamahalaan at wala na silang nakikitang mali rito kahit naang perang ipinamumudmod upang makuha ang katapatan ngmga opisyal na ito ay galing sa kaban ng bayan.

Bukod sa dapat nilang tandaan na ang panunuhol at katiwalianay nanatiling krimen sa ilalim ng ating mga batas, dapat din nilangisipin na sa bawat pisong napupunta sa kanilang bulsa ay maynapagkakaitang mga indibidwal ng kanilang mga karapatan.

Ang dapat sa mga tiwaling opisyal ng pamahalaan aypansamantalang patirahin sa mga lugar na napakahirap puntahandahil sa kawalan ng maayos na kalsada at hindi rin naaabot ngserbisyo ng kuryente at komunikasyon. O kaya ay isang linggosilang makipamuhay sa mga pamilyang nakatira sa ilalim ng mgatulay o kaya ay sa mga kariton para maramdaman nila ang dinaranasng mga Pilipinong wala na ngang sapat na kabuhayan ay hindi panakakatanggap ng mga serbisyong panlipunan mula sa pamahalaan.

Sa ganito ring paraan, maiintindihan nilang angpangungurakot ay hindi lang pala krimen kundi paglabag na rinsa karapatang pantao ng mga mamamayan.

NOONG panahon ni FVR, ilan sa mga nabunyag na kwentong katiwalian ay ang PEA-Amari, kontrata sa mgaindependent power producers, at Expo Filipino.

Kay Erap, payola sa jueteng, Boracay Mansion, at mgapandaraya sa stock market.

Syempre hindi rin pahuhuli si Ate Glo. Nandyan ang overpricedna Diosdado Macapagal Boulevard, ang misteryosong bank accountni Jose Pidal, fertilizer scam, at ang kontrobersyal na ZTE nationalbroadband network deal.

Mula sa antas ng Presidente hanggang sa mga lokal na opisyalsa barangay, tila naging bahagi na ng pampulitikang kultura ngmga Pinoy ang korapsyon. Masyado na tayong nabantad dito atitinuturing na ngayong ‘normal’ ang pag-kickback ng mga pulitikosa pondo ng mga pagawaing bayan. Ang tawag nga ng mgacontractors sa porsyento ng mga mambabatas, lokal na opisyal, atmga kawani ng pamahalaan sa budget ng mga pampublikongproyekto ay ‘SOP’ o standard operating procedure.

Maganda na sanang senyales ang hatol na ‘guilty’ ngSandiganbayan kay dating pangulong Estrada sa kasongpandarambong (‘plunder’), sapagkat sa unang pagkakataon ay maymataas na opisyal ng pamahalaang naparusahan. Ngunit ilanglinggo lamang ang lumipas at muling namayani ang laro ngpulitika at binigyan ng ‘pardon’ ni GMA ang na-convict na datinglider ng bansa. Ganun na lang ‘yun?

Sa ZTE naman, bagama’t ibinunyag ni dating kalihim RomuloNeri ang tangkang panunuhol ni dating Commission on Electionschairperson Benjamin Abalos, tumikom ang bibig nito at nagtagosa saya ng ‘executive privilege’ nang maungkat ang posibleng


NOTES ONTHE NBN-ZTESCANDALWhy are we not surprised?

n By PERCIVAL CENDAÑA

YES, it was big, bold and brazen. But in theend there was nothing really surprisingabout the NBN-ZTE scandal because theArroyo administration has raised the barof corruption in the country to an almost

numbing level. It is also not surprising if not a singlesoul is sent to purgatory because of involvement inthis incredibly terrible deal.

On the political fronthowever, the scandal has laidbare the cracks in the makeshiftfoundations of PresidentArroyo’s continued reign. Thefoundations that wereoriginally cemented by greedfor both wealth and power arenow weakening as courtiers and

family members of thepresident eagerly fight over thespoils. The botched NationalBroadband Project is in the sixto seven billion-peso range.Simply put, this is a very bigpool of corruptible money—sobig an amount that loyalties canbe breached.

The China syndromeAs China developed into an

economic powerhouse, it hasaccumulated a veritablyimpressive foreign reserve pool.The Chinese government sits onone the largest (if not thelargest) foreign exchangereserve of any single country inthe world. This enormousamount is tentatively pegged atmore than a trillion US dollars.This is where the corruptibilityof projects paid for with Chinesegovernment loans begin.

Because so much money isjust sleeping in their coffers,China is very anxious to lend itout and make profit in themarket. But the lending out ofthe Chinese government’smoney is not without stringsattached.

First, it has onerous termswherein the Chinesegovernment chooses thecontractors and insists onsettlement of contract disputesin Chinese courts. Second,allowances for kickbacks andbribe money are seeminglyincorporated into the contractcost.

No wonder, a project thatshould have cost $130 millionbalooned into a whooping $329million fiasco.

This particular scenariopresents an environ that is veryconducive to corruption. As

usual, Filipino politicians aremore than willing to grab the“opportunity.”

De Venecia connectionAt first, the exposé of Joey

de Venecia was quite surprising.A lot of people were wonderingas to what prompted animportant ally or cohort of thepresident to spill the beans.Scratching the surface wouldreveal that there is nothingreally surprising about deVenecia’s action (or reaction assome would put it). It was just asimple case of some crookwhining because he was robbedof his loot. In this case, thewhining actually meant that hewas robbed “not once, buttwice.”

Speaker Jose de Venecia wasthe first agent or salesperson ofthe Chinese government in thecountry. He was responsible for

5Human Rights FORUM

opening up the corruptionfloodgate in the country toChina. The Chinese-fundedNorthrail Project was a deVenecia project in thebeginning. He was the one whoshepherded the approval of the

deal. But it was said that he hasbeen robbed of the project byno less than the FirstGentleman. The second blowcame when the $329 millionNBN project was awarded toZTE Corp., cutting out the shareof his son’s AmsterdamHoldings Inc. This time, the dealwas brokered by Malacañang’sown agent, then-COMELECChair Benjamin Abalos.

As expected, the Speaker gotvery angry because he could notstand being robbed byMalacañang the second timearound.

Speaker de Venecia did nottake the “back off” warning ofthe First Gentleman lightly. He,in effect, asserted his right to theloot by waging a campaignagainst the NBN-ZTE project. Heused his pawn in media, JariusBondoc, to lay bare the lopsideddeal. And to heighten thedrama, his son Joey entered thefray. The battle soon took a lifeof its own.

In the future, it would beinteresting to know if Speakerde Venecia originally intendedto implicate Malacañang or hewas just using the exposé asleverage to get his “fair share”of the deal.

RashomonRashomon is a cinematic

gem helmed by acclaimedJapanese film director AkiraKurosawa. In the film, a crime

The cast of characters in the NBN-ZTE scandals: Joey de Venecia, theFirst Gentleman Mike Arroyo, JariusBondoc, Benjamin Abalos.

PJR/LITO OCAMPO

PJR/LITO OCAMPO


was witnessed by fourindividuals and they recount theincident in four contradictoryways. The Senate investigationof the NBN-ZTE project was aninteresting treat: it wasRashomon in real life. Thepublic heard stories toldRashomon-fashion.

The Wack Wack Golf Clubincident involving the FirstGentleman and Joey de Veneciawas very interesting because theyoung de Venecia and the FirstGentleman have disparateaccounts of what actuallytranspired in the fairways. TheSpeaker’s son alleged that Mr.Arroyo told him to back off thedeal while the first gentlemaninsists that no such warning wasgiven.

Another interesting incidentwas the one with COMELECChair Benjamin Abalos andformer NEDA Director RomuloNeri. Neri recalled that Abalosattempted to bribe him to gethis endorsement for the project.Neri’s account was vivid exceptthat he cannot be certain of theexact amount, whether it wastwo hundred thousand or twohundred million. Abalospresented his own vividrecollection of the incident andsaid that no offer was made.

Even DOTC SecretaryLeandro Mendoza’s recollectionof the process of the project’sapproval differed from thepaper trail presented before theSenate panel.

What is most damning iswhen two persons who aresupposed to be in the same campdo not agree on a crucial issueto the point of contradictingeach other. This happened whenSecretary Mendoza and DBMSecretary Rolando Andaya gavetwo different takes on the natureand legal framework of theNBN project.

A truth with multipleversions is only possible inmovies like Rashomon. In reallife when this truth has two ormore versions, someone isclearly lying. The NBN-ZTEscandal has elevated lying infull view of the public, evenunder oath, to the level of acompetitive sport.

Executive privilegeThe day before his

testimony, Romulo Neripromised to drop a bomb soexplosive that it could lead toanother EDSA uprising. Butwhen the question on theinvolvement of the Presidentcame, he invoked the mythicalexecutive privilege, thusevading the question of the day.Some observers believe thatMalacañang pressured and/orcoerced Neri to follow thepalace script.

In the case of the NBN-ZTEscandal, executive privilege hastaken a new meaning. Now it

means the privilege of the“executive” to enter intoanomalous deals with heftykickbacks.

This brings us to the verycore of the National BroadbandProject—its relevance andusefulness. Experts includingtwo economics professors fromthe University of the Philippinesinsist that there is no need forsuch a project because twobroadband networks operatedby private companies arealready in place. Also, thePhilippine government alreadyowns the PhilippineAdministrative Network Project(PANP) and the PhilippineResearch, Education andGovernment InformationNetwork (PREGINET).

The DOTC, theimplementing agency, up tonow cannot show a feasibilitystudy that would merit thebuilding of a nationalbroadband network. Whatprompted the project could bethe availability of credit fromthe Chinese government ratherthan need and relevance.

The NBN-ZTE projectclearly has no apparent purposeother than further enriching theexecutive in Malacañang andher cronies.

No expectationsHad the NBN-ZTE project

pushed through, it could haveincreased the alreadygargantuan nationalgovernment debt by more thantwo percent. In twenty years,taxpayers would have shelledout a total of $527 million to paythe interest and principalamortization of the NBN-ZTEloan.

Even with such an obsceneamount, we cannot really exactaccountability from thoseinvolved in this corruptionscandal. It is expected that theofficials responsible for thisfiasco will go unpunished.

Even if the cracks in theArroyo’s inner chambers havebeen exposed because of thescandal, this would be easilyrepaired by a brand of cementcalled greed. This governmenthas really mastered the art ofpayola. A few days after thedeal was exposed, the palacewas distributing money togovernors and congressmen.

This is not at all surprising.Remember, we live in the era ofGloria Macapagal Arroyo. n

PERCIVAL CENDAÑA is theDeputy Secretary General ofAkbayan Party-list.

Joey de Venecia faces the media. PJR/LITO OCAMPO

DOTC Secretary Mendoza

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7Human Rights FORUM

THE Right to Health of everyone isguaranteed both in internationalconventions and domestic laws.

The 1987 Philippine Constitution underArticle 13, Section 11 states, “There shall

Dissecting the Hospital Detention Law

HEALTHCARE UNDERLOCK AND KEYn By CANDY DIEZ

Tbe priority for the needs of the under-privileged, sick,elderly, disabled, women, and children. The State shallendeavor to provide free medical care to paupers.”

The United NationsInternational Covenant onEconomic, Social and CulturalRights (UN ICESCR) alsostresses the right to health ofeveryone. Article 12.2-D

emphasizes: “The creation ofconditions which would assure toall medical service and medicalattention in the event of sickness”.

However in spite of thesestate guarantees and

conventions, quality andaffordable healthcare remainselusive for Filipinos.

The unfortunate, impoverishedpeople

Suffering from prolongedlabor, Marites was admitted inBukidnon Provincial Hospital inMaramag on the 12th of July,2007. She was then pregnantwith her 7th child.

With her husband afflictedwith malaria, Marites was leftwith 6 children to feed, aPhp4,750.00 unpaid hospital billand a new-born baby detainedwith her at the provincialhospital’s abandoned out-patient department. Withoutsufficient finances to settlehospital obligations, Maritesand her baby still remainedadmitted almost a month aftershe was hospitalized.Photos: MEDICAL ACTION GROUP (MAG)


Marites was just among the18 patients who lay languishingin carton mats in a wardresembling a detention ward inthe Bukidnon ProvincialHospital in August of 2007.Bukidnon patients wereconstantly afraid of acquiringother diseases during their stayin the filthy hospital ward.Patients detained for almostthree months have reportedlytried to escape the hospitalpremises for lack of adequatefood and nourishment providedby the hospital.

The Hospital Detention LawTo address the recurring

cases of patients who get heldin hospitals because they wereunable to pay their bills, alegislative measure was enactedin April 27, 2007, declaring theact of detaining patients inhospitals illegal.

Under Republic Act No.9439, popularly known as theHospital Detention Law,patients without the financialcapacity to settle their hospitalobligations but have fully orpartially recovered are allowedto leave the hospital or medicalclinic upon the accomplishmentof a promissory note.

The promissory notecovering the patient’s hospitalexpenses should be guaranteedby a mortgage or a co-makerwho will be similarly heldliable for the unpaid hospitaldues.

A patient also has the right

to demand for his/her medicalcertificate as well as otherpapers necessary for his/herrelease from the said medicalfacility. In case of deceasedpatients, the correspondingcertificates and other documentsshall be similarly released to thepatients’ relatives.

Failure to adhere to theHospital Detention Law wouldentail fines amounting to notless than twenty thousand pesos(P20,000.00), but not more thanfifty thousand pesos

(P50,000.00). The violating partymay also be imprisoned for notless than one month, but notmore than six months. Both fineand imprisonment may also beapplied depending on thediscretion of the proper court.

The Hospital DetentionLaw, however, does not applyto patients who opted forprivate rooms. It prioritizesindigent patients.

Profits vs public serviceWhile the Hospital............................................................

Detainees: Indigent patients and their families kept in detention at the Bukidnon Provincial Hospital of Maramag. Photos: MEDICAL ACTION GROUP (MAG)

Gaol or refuge? Under RA 9439, hospitals cannot detain patients who are unable to pay for medical services.

The state’s lackof political andmoral will toaddress theissue ofhealthcareremains evidentin the 2007National Budget.

9Human Rights FORUM

Detention Law gained praise forits pro-poor principles, itspassage did not please hospitalowners as well as doctors andnurses. The Private HospitalsAssociation of the Philippines(PHAP) began publicly airingtheir opposition to the law.

PHAP argued that withoutthe payments from hospital fees,hospital funds will not sufficefor medicine and equipmentexpenses as well as the salariesof hospital employees. Thegroup added that the hospital’slack of fund sources will lead toclosures of hospitals and willfurther drive health profes-sionals to work abroad, wherebetter compensation and benefitpackages await them.

Rustico Jimenez, spokes-person of PHAP, argued thatmany hospitals are burdenedwith unpaid bills. According tohim, among the patients whosecured promissory notes, onlyone out of 10 of them honoredthe promissory agreements.Meanwhile, in their desperation,other patients resort to pro-viding fictitious names andaddresses to avoid their unpaidobligations.

With these arguments, PHAPthreatened to conduct anationwide ‘hospital holiday,’with PHAP member hospitalsclosing down two to three timesa month (although theiremergency wards will be keptopen). The holiday will continueuntil 2008 or until the law isamended or reasonable Imple-menting Rules and Regulations(IRR) are formulated. Amongthe 300 member hospitals ofPHAP are St. Luke’s MedicalCenter, Asian Hospital,University of Santo Tomas (UST)Hospital, Medical City, and theMakati Medical Center.

The Department of Health(DOH) responded to the appealsof PHAP to consider the privatehospital’s interest in the issue.DOH, through UndersecretaryAlexander Padilla, invitedPHAP in the formulation of theIRR of the Hospital DetentionLaw.

PHAP relented and post-poned its planned strike. Butafter the initial crafting of the

IRR, the group renewed its callfor the hospital boycott, sayingthe IRR can not sufficientlyprotect the interest of theprivate hospitals.

During the hospital holidaydebates, DOH Secretary Fran-cisco Duque III contested thearguments of the possible de-crease in the private hospitals’profits. Duque pointed out thatthese hospitals are actuallyreceiving sufficient funds fromPhilHealth. According to theHealth secretary, 70% ofPhilHealth reimbursements goto private hospitals, and ameager 30% was reimbursed togovernment hospitals.

Last priorityAccording to the latest

analysis (2003) of the NationalStatistical Coordination Board(NCSB), 24 out of 100 Filipinofamilies have not earned enoughto fulfill their basic food andnon-food needs. Unemploy-ment rates also remained highaccording to the NationalStatistics Office, with 2.8 millionFilipinos unemployed as of Julythis year.

With not enough earnings tospend for basic necessities,healthcare remained the least of

the Filipinos’ priorities.In 1999, the DOH reported

that cases of under medication(antibiotics) or over-medicationon cheap preparations wereprevalent. The World HealthOrganization meanwhile at-tested in their World DrugSituation in 2000 that less than30% of Filipinos have regularaccess to medicines. 40% havenever seen a doctor.

In 2006, a meager 2.9 percentis being spent on medical careby a Filipino family. Expen-ditures on healthcare reflectedthat 24.1 percent alone was spenton hospital room charges in2001. 21.7 percent was used forother medical charges such asdoctor’s fees.

With poverty plaguingFilipinos around the nation, totrust in the government’s healthcare aid is the second mostlogical recourse. The statehowever, has again failed in thisaspect.

The state’s lack of politicaland moral will to address theissue of healthcare remainsevident in the 2007 NationalBudget. The state’s budget forhealth in 2007 was only 1.28 %of the National Budgetcompared to the 8% allocation

for national defense and 21% fordebt service.

In fact in the WHO WorldHealth Statistics 2007, thePhilippines received a low rank(153rd out of 192 countries) in thegovernment’s health spendingas a share of a country’s totalspending on health.

Thus it is no longersurprising that in a studyconducted by the World Bankin 2001, data showed thatFilipino patients prefer privatehospitals over governmenthealth facilities. According tothe Filipino Report Card of Pro-Poor services, patients utilizethe private hospitals and clinicsthe most in the Philippines andacross the regions (46%-59%).Government hospitals rankedsecond with 30%-45% nation-wide and in NCR and Luzon.

In spite of their financiallimitations, Filipino familiescontinue to demand for qualityand satisfactory healthcareservices. This demand is farfrom being met by thegovernment, what with ameasly health budget allocationeach year. The need for betterhealthcare is therefore beinganswered by the privatehospitals.

Photo: MEDICAL ACTION GROUP (MAG)


In the guise of healthcarereform

While sincerely attemptingto resolve the accessibility andaffordability issues ofhealthcare, the passage of theHospital Detention Law has justmerely transferred the state’sobligations to the private sector.

Instead of creating anenvironment in which health-care is accessible and affordableby allocating sufficient healthbudget to address the healthcareneeds of the public, thegovernment has preferred toprioritize expenditures fornational defense and debtservicing.

Patients are then forced tomake out-of-pocket payments,driving them to the mercy ofprivate hospitals that arecharging fees beyond thepatients’ financial means.

Private hospitals, mean-while, are far from beingunscathed. In their desire to earnmore profits, they have mana-ged to neglect the individualsthey have sworn to protect andcare for. Thus healthcare in theprivate sector is oftentimesbased on the financial capacityof the patient.

While the blatant profite-ering of private hospitals at theexpense of the poor Filipinopatients is by itself condemnable,their arguments, however arenot. The threat of hospitalclosures as well as the possibleincrease in the migration ofhealth professionals cannotsimply be disregarded.

In 2003, two hundredhospitals closed down and eighthundred were partly closed dueto the lack of health workers.The Philippines to date is thenumber one exporter of nursesaround the world. An estimated85% of Filipino nurses areworking abroad. The Profes-sional Regulation Commissionin 2004 reported that 8,931nurses leave the country eachyear. The large internationaldemand for nurses triggered thedoctors to become nurses as well.The medicine enrollees havedecreased by 33% in 2004.

If the government is trulysincere in its efforts to address

the cases of hospital detentionin the country, the passage of alaw prohibiting such cases willnever be enough.

Until the widespreadpoverty continues to ail theFilipinos, until the governmenttruly recognizes its right tohealth obligation to its people,until comprehensive andsystematic reforms in thevarious aspects of the healthcaresystem in the Philippines areimplemented, the passage of theHospital Detention Law willonly remain a symbolic gestureof the state’s attempt to fulfillits Right to Health obligationsto the Filipinos.

REFERENCES:

Presentation

GMA News TV. (2007 May 24) Privatehospitals defer strike over new law.May 24, 2007. http://www.gmanews.tv/story/43718/Private-hospitals-defer-strike-over-new-law (Accessed: October 17, 2007)

IBON Info. (2007 Oct. 3) RP amongworld’s worst in health services. http://info.ibon.org/ index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=204&Itemid=51(Accessed: October 22, 2007)

Medical Action Group, Inc. (2007 Aug.1). Bukidnon Provincial Hospitalpatients’ profile.

National Statistics Office. (2007 Oct.9) Change in spending patternamong Filipino families seen in2006. http://www.census.gov.ph/d a t a / p r e s s r e l e a s e / 2 0 0 7 /ie06tx.html (Accessed: October 19,2007)

National Statistics Office. (2007 Oct.7) Medical care expenditures in 2000reached P34.6 billion. http://w w w . c e n s u s . g o v . p h / d a t a /pressrelease/2002/ ie00mdtx.html(Accessed: October 19, 2007)

Peria, E. (2007 Mar. 14) Access tomedicines with the right to health inthe Philippine context. PowerpointPresentation.

Republic Act No. 9439, The HospitalDetention Law. http://www.senatorpiacayetano.com/ psc/a l l t h e b i l l s . p h p ? r e c o r d I D = 37(Accessed: October 15, 2007)

Salaverria, L. (2007 May 25) ‘Hospitalholiday’ off, Sen. Pia Cayetanoexplains. Philippine Daily Inquirer.h t t p : / / n ew s i n fo . i n qu i r e r. n et /i n q u i r e r h e a d l i n e s / n a t i o n /view_article.php? article_id=67895(Accessed: October 17, 2007)

Salaverria, L. (2007 May 24) Privatehospitals protest new law, threaten‘strike’. Philippine Daily Inquirer.h t t p : / / n ew s i n fo . i n qu i r e r. n et /b r e a k i n g n e w s / n a t i o n / v i e warticle.php?article_id= 67658(Accessed: October 17, 2007)

Tandoc, E. (2007 June 5) Threat ofhospital ‘holiday’ lingers. PhilippineDaily Inquirer. http://n e w s i n f o . i n q u i r e r . n e t /b r e a k i n g n e w s / n a t i o n /view_article.php? article_id=69679(Accessed: October 17, 2007)

United Nations. Human Rights – TheCommittee on Economic, Social andCultural Rights Fact Sheet no. 16(rev.1), p. 40.

CANDY DIEZ works with theMedical Action Group (MAG).Photos: MEDICAL ACTION GROUP (MAG)

Congressional Planning andBudget Department. (2006 Nov.)An analysis of the president’sbudget for fiscal year 2007. http:// i a 3 5 0 6 3 4 . u s . a r c h i v e . o r g / 0 /i t e m s / C o n g r e s s B u d g e tP l a n n i n g D e p t 2 0 0 7 N a t i o n a lBudgetofPhilippines/budget07.pdf(Accessed: October 22, 2007)

Dizon, N. (2007 Aug. 30) Hospitalholiday to proceed in September—PHAP. Philippine Daily Inquirer. http:// n e w s i n f o . i n q u i r e r . n e t /breakingnews/nation/view_article.php?article_id= 85634 (Accessed:October 17, 2007)

Galvez Tan, J. Philippine nationalhealth situation in 2005. Powerpoint

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11Human Rights FORUM

Until when shall we wait?

n By Mary Aileen Diez-Bacalso

ON August 30, 2001, on the occasion of theInternational Day of the Disappeared, adelegation from the Asian Federation Against

Involuntary Disappearances (AFAD) and the Familiesof Victims of Involuntary Disappearance (FIND) hadan audience with then newly-installed PresidentGloria Macapagal Arroyo. The delegation brought tothe president’s attention the still unresolved cases ofenforced disappearances of the previous regimes(Marcos, Aquino and Ramos administrations). Thepresident promised that in her administration therewould be no single case of enforced disappearances.

CONTINUE WITHOUT LET-UPDISAPPEARANCES

AFAD and FIND lobbied forthe Philippine government’ssupport for what was then adraft United NationsConvention for the Protectionof All Persons from Enforcedor Involuntary Disappearancesas well as for the enactment ofthe anti-enforced disappearancebill. The president assured thedelegation that the Philippinegovernment would support theinternational treaty and wouldenact a domestic lawcriminalizing enforceddisappearances. She thenreferred us to then-VicePresident and Secretary ofForeign Affairs, Teofisto

Relatives of desaparecidos(disappeared) and

advocates tireless in theirquest for justice.

(PEPITO FRIAS)


Guingona who likewisepromised to do somethingconcrete for the Philippinegovernment’s support to thetreaty.

Five years after, on Decem-ber 20, 2006, the UN GeneralAssembly unanimouslyadopted the Convention. Lessthan a couple of months later,on February 7, 2007, fifty-sevencountries signed the newlyadopted international treaty.The number of signatorycountries would reach 61 withina few months.

This Convention providesfor two new rights: the right totruth and the right not to besubjected to enforced disap-pearances.

Surprisingly, despite thePhilippines’ record of beingprompt when it comes tosigning UN treaties, our countryis not one of the signatories tothis newly adopted treaty.

The much-needed Philip-pine domestic law criminalizingenforced disappearances, whichwas expected to be the first everlaw against enforced disap-pearance in Asia, has never seenthe light of day. Recent develop-ments show the likelihood ofNepal being the first Asiancountry to enact such a law. Thebill, which has languished inCongress for thirteen yearsnow, was filed anew when the14th Congress assumed itsfunction, with Rep. SaturOcampo and Rep. Edcel Lagman

as authors. Supporters of the billhave to start from square oneagain in their lobby work.

In a meeting withrepresentatives of thePermanent Mission of thePhilippines to the UnitedNations in Geneva during theSeptember 2007 session of theUN Human Rights Council,AFAD renewed its appeal forsupport. The same response washeard: the Mission had not yetreceived instruction fromManila. Still, the Mission gavea reassurance that thePhilippine government isperforming its human rightscommitment step by step, asmanifested in the repeal of thedeath penalty, its support to theConvention Against Tortureand the approval of the Writ ofAmparo.

But there is nothingreassuring about the continuedand unabated cases of forceddisappearance in the country.As cases of disappearancesremain unsolved, the familiesof the disappeared incessantlyask: Until when shall we wait?

The international conventionThe International Con-

vention on the Protection of AllPersons from Enforced orInvoluntary Disappearance is auniversally binding instrumentintended to address the prob-lem of enforced disappearan-ces. The final text of theConvention was approved in

September 2005 by the inter-sessional Open-ended WorkingGroup to Elaborate a DraftLegally-Binding NormativeInstrument for the Protection ofAll Persons from Enforced orInvoluntary Disappearances. Itwas adopted by the UN HumanRights Council on June 27, 2006,approved by the GeneralAssembly in December 2006,and signed by 57 States onFebruary 7, 2007 in Paris. As ofthis writing, four moregovernments had signed thetreaty. The Convention willenter into force as soon as it isratified by 20 States.

The Convention states thatno person shall be subjected toenforced disappearances underany circumstances, may it be astate of war or a threat of war,internal political stability orany other public emergency. It

strongly holds that enforceddisappearance constitutes anoffense under criminal law asit considers this widespread andsystematic practice a crimeagainst humanity.

Furthermore, the Con-vention provides for the rightof the relatives of thedisappeared person and of thesociety as a whole to know thetruth regarding the fate andwhereabouts of the disappearedand on the progress and resultsof the investigation.

State Parties to the newConvention shall cooperate insearching for, locating andreleasing disappeared personsand, in the event of death, inexhuming and identifying themand returning their remains.

Moreover, the Conventioncontains a provision thatemphasizes the right to form

Former Akbayan Rep. Etta Rosales, Edith Burgos, mother of missing activistJonas Burgos, and the author pause for a brief chat while enforceddisappearances opponents hold vigil for victims of human rights violations(right photo).

Photos: Asian Federation Against Involuntary Disappearances (AFAD).


and participate freely inorganizations and associationssupporting the cause of thedisappeared.

Finally, the Conventionprovides that:

• Enforced disappearance isa continuing offense,

therefore statutes oflimitation shall not applyuntil the fate andwhereabouts of the victimare established;

• Enforced disappearancesconstituting crimes againsthumanity (systematic andwidespread practice) are

imprescriptible;• No one shall be held in

secret detention;• All State Parties shall

establish official registersof persons deprived ofliberty;

• In cases of enforceddisappearance “victim”means the disappearedperson and any individualwho has suffered harm as adirect result of an enforceddisappearance; and

• All victims (in the broadsense stated above) ofdisappearance have theright to obtain reparationand prompt, fair andadequate compensation.This shall include:° restitution,° rehabilitation,° satisfaction (including

restoration of dignityand reputation), and

° guarantee of non-repetition.

Asian countries do not havea regional mechanism toprotect, promote and upholdhuman rights, be it aConvention, a Commission ora Court. In comparison, LatinAmerica has its Inter-AmericanConvention for the Protectionof All Persons from Enforcedor Involuntary Disappearances,while Europe has severalhuman rights instruments suchas the Council of Europe andthe European Convention onHuman Rights. Moreover, at

present, not a single country inAsia has a national law crimi-nalizing enforced disappearan-ces. Thus, the Convention, ifadopted and ratified, willfacilitate the enactment ofnational legislations crimi-nalizing enforced disappearan-ces and ensure the implementa-tion of the provisions of thefuture treaty.

A look at statistics willshow why Asian countries arein direst need of suchmechanisms. Recent reports ofthe UN Working Group onEnforced or Involuntary Disap-pearances show that the highestnumber of disappearancesoccur in the Asian countries.The cases occurred in the pastand continue to happen atpresent, as in the experience ofthe Philippines. With theabsence of national, regionaland international mechanismscriminalizing enforceddisappearances, the UN is theonly venue which the familiesof the disappeared in the Asianregion can use.

A state that ratifies the saidConvention will be compelledto enact the necessary legisla-tion to ensure that it fulfills itsinternational obligations.While it may not have a felteffect in the short-term, it willstill be able to oblige States toact in a more humane manner.

The anti-enforced disap-pearance bill, which is on its 13th

year since it was first filed bythe late Rep. Bonifacio Gillego,

Rep. Rosales was one of the main authors of the anti-enforceddisappearance bill during her stint in Congress. Photos: AFAD


adopts the definition providedfor in the international Con-vention and many of its salientprovisions.

The Convention is a clearstep in the struggle againstimpunity. It would ensureindictment of the perpetratorsand provide hope to thesurvivors and the relatives ofthe victims.

Under scrutiny: Human rightsrecord of Philippines

At no other time than nowshould the Philippine govern-ment sign and ratify theConvention and make way fora national law criminalizingenforced disappearances.Several times, the governmentof France, in many joint eventswith AFAD, called on thePhilippine government to do so.As a member of the UN HumanRights Council, the Philippinesshould manifest its politicalwill to resolve past cases ofenforced disappearances andprevent their recurrence. Itshould do this especially sincethe Philippine government isonce again in the limelightbecause of its appalling humanrights record.

The country faces censurefrom the international commu-nity because of the risingnumber of cases of humanrights violations, particularlycases of enforced or involuntarydisappearances and extra-judicial executions.

According to the humanrights group Karapatan, in apresentation before theNational Consultative Summiton Extra-Judicial Killings andEnforced Disappearances calledfor by the Supreme Court, 188cases of enforced disappearan-ces have been documented sincethe Arroyo administrationassumed power in 2001.

One of these recent cases isthat of Jonas Burgos, 37, apeasant organizer who wasforcibly taken by fourunidentified men and a womanon April 28, 2007. Despite thefiling of a case of habeas corpusand the extraordinary efforts ofthe victim’s mother, Jonas isnowhere to be found. The case

has been personally filedbefore the UN Working Groupon Enforced or InvoluntaryDisappearances by EditaBurgos, the victim’s mother.The Philippine National Police,alleged to have been responsi-ble for the disappearance,completely denies responsi-bility and has conducted a smearcampaign by accusing thevictim of being a member of theNew People’s Army. Such adesperate effort to justify thedisappearance leads to fears forthe life of Jonas. There is alsowidespread concern that thecase will become one of themany unresolved cases ofenforced disappearances.

Apart from the Burgos case,more recent cases include thestill unresolved disappearanceof UP students Karen Empeñoand Shirlyn Cadapan, as well

as that of Pastor Berlin Guerreroof the United Church of Christof the Philippines.

FIND’s presentation beforethe same consultative summitshow the following data:

1. As of June 2007, there hadbeen 2,023 reported victimsof disappearance nation-wide (since 1971);

2. The Marcos regime re-gistered the biggest num-ber of reported disap-pearances (855);

3. Most of the victims comefrom the basic sectors:farmers (820), workers(254) and youth (149);

4. The AFP registered thehighest number of involve-ment in disappearancecases (1,040) followed bythe defunct PC-INP (225)and Marcos’ ICHDF (146);

5. Majority of the victims arebetween 16 and 25 years ofage (482) followed bythose between 26 and 35years old (409). The agerecords of 498 victims werenot available;

6. Most of the disappearancesoccurred in the followingregions: Western Visayas(327), Western Mindanao(193), Southern Mindanao(181);

7. The period 1983-1985 (peakof the mass protest againstthe Marcos dictatorship)recorded the highest

number of disappearances,followed by the period1987-1989 (during theAquino Aministration’sTotal War Policy);

8. FIND has exhumed 81remains of victims nation-wide.

Thus, from separate pre-sentations of both Karapatan andFIND, it is evident that whilecases of the past remainunresolved, recent casescontinue to occur without letup.Perpetrators enjoy the privilegeof impunity that is causing non-resolution of the cases andrepetition of the same crimes.

Beyond mere statistics,these cases speak of lives lost,of families broken, of motherswaiting for their disappearedchildren to come back, ofchildren waiting for theirdisappeared parents to return,of wives searching withoutsuccess for their husbands. Thiscrime against humanityviolates the most basic of rightsand causes emotional andpsychological trauma amongthe surviving kin of the victims.

In response to thisalarming phenomenon, thegovernment established theTask Force Usig and later theMelo Commission in order tolook into cases of extra-judicialexecution and enforced disap-pearances. Both bodies con-firmed these killings andenforced disappearances, impli-cating General Jovito PalparanJr. for these crimes. Yet in her2006 State of the Nation Address,President Arroyo heapedpraises on Palparan.

The United Nations SpecialRapporteur on Extra-JudicialKillings, Prof. Philip Alston,was invited by the Philippinegovernment to look into casesof extra-judicial killings, whichare closely related to enforceddisappearances. In many cases,victims first disappeared beforethey were found dead.

Alton’s report to the UNHuman Rights Council inMarch 2007 states:

The impact of my visit,although I have not yet

Asian Federation Against Involuntary Disappearances (AFAD) lobbied hardbefore the United Nations for the ratification of the International Conventionon the Protection of All Persons from Enforced or InvoluntaryDisappearance.

The much neededPhilippine domesticlaw criminalizingenforceddisappearances,which was expectedto be the first everlaw against enforceddisappearance inAsia, has never seenthe light of day.............................................................

Photo: AFAD


completed my final report,has been deeply schizo-phrenic. On the one hand,the President has taken arange of positive initiati-ves, many of which I list inmy preliminary note to theCouncil. On the otherhand, the military andmany key officials haveburied their collectiveheads in the sand andannounced that businesswill continue as usual.

More recently, the Secre-tariat of the UN WorkingGroup on Enforced orInvoluntary Disappearances(UNWGEID), in a meeting withthe Asian Federation AgainstInvoluntary Disappearancesheld in Geneva, Switzerland onSeptember 27, 2007, confirmedthat the Working Group hasmade an official request foranother visit to the Philippines.Such request is obviously afollow-up of the result of thevisit of Professor Alston whichconfirmed that there are indeedcases of enforced disap-pearances perpetrated by themilitary. This request, ifaccepted by the Philippines,could be crucial to theevaluation of the PhilippineGovernment’s performance inthe field of human rights as itwill be subjected to theUniversal Periodic Review bythe UN Human Rights Councilin April 2008.

In its Resolution 60/251, theGeneral Assembly decided thatthe Council will, among others,undertake a universal periodicreview based on objective andreliable information of thefulfillment by each State of itshuman rights obligations andcommitments in a mannerwhich ensures universality ofcoverage and equal treatmentwith respect to all Member-States. The review shall be acooperative mechanism basedon an interactive dialog withthe full involvement of thecountry concerned and withconsideration given to itscapacity-building needs. Such amechanism shall complementand not duplicate the work of

treaty bodies.It will be recalled that in

1991, upon the invitation of theAquino administration, the UNWorking Group on EnforcedDisap-pearances visited thecountry. Such visit confirmedcases of enforced disap-pearances both during theMarcos regime and the thenincumbent administra-tion ofPresident Corazon Aquino.The following were therecommendations of theUNWGEID to the Philippinegovernment:

1. Sever the national policefrom the army and put thepolice under a differentcabinet minister in orderto reduce the power in thearea of maintenance ofpublic order in the handsof one single body;

2. Disband the CAFGUs – asrecommended also by theInternational LaborOrganization, the PeaceCommission, the SenateCommittee on Justice andHuman Rights and variousNGOs – or at least restricttheir deployment to thedefensive action under thesupervision of the army inwhich strict disciplineshould be enforced;

3. Introduce legislation tonarrow powers of arrest bystrictly circumscribingwhich category of publicofficials may arrestcivilians for whichoffences, in case the

Supreme Court had noimmediate occasion toreview its rulings onwarrantless arrests;

4. Introduce legislation thatshould provide for civilaction against military andpolice personnel for alloffenses involving civil-ians;

5. Prosecute those responsi-ble for disappearances andtake severe disciplinarymeasures against officerswho have failed to enforceadequate measures toprevent disappearances;

6. Fight actively against thepractices of “red labeling”;

7. Establish regional andcentral registers of arrest inorder to facilitate thesearch for missing persons;

8. Pursue even more vigo-rously the clarification ofdisappearances;

9. Initiate a thorough over-haul of both the law andpractice of habeas corpus;and

10. Protect witnesses.

Sixteen years later, insteadof seeing the above recom-mendations implemented, it issad to note that cases of the pastremain unresolved. Worse,they continue unabated. Withthe implementation of theHuman Security Act of 2007, thecountry’s local anti-terror law,it is feared that the sorry humanrights record of the country willonly worsen.

The government, therefore,

should seriously consider theUNWGEID’s request for asecond visit to the country if itis to manifest its political willto resolve this lingeringphenomenon.

With the absence of disclo-sure of what really happenedto victims of enforced disap-pearances and efforts toestablish the identity of theirperpetrators, truth becomes ahollow byword. Justice re-mains elusive as no court hasmade a breakthrough in pro-secuting perpetrators. Redressis unreachable as no victim orfamily of the victim has beenindemnified. Reconstruction ofthe historical memory of thedisappeared will not be fullymade possible without theattainment of truth, justice,redress and reparation.

A ray of hopeYet the unused powers of

the judiciary enabled theSupreme Court to call for aNational Consultative Summiton Extra-Judicial Killings andEnforced Disappearances. Abreakthrough in the country’shistory, it not only institu-tionalized the issue of extra-judicial killings and enforceddisappearances, but came upwith concrete recommenda-tions to guarantee solutions.

A couple of months later, onSeptember 25, 2007, the SupremeCourt approved the draft Ruleon the Writ of Amparo. Itprovides “a remedy available toany person whose right to life,liberty and security is violatedor threatened with violation byan unlawful act or omission of apublic official or employee, orof a private individual or entity.”To take effect on October 24, 2007,the Rule protects people fromextra-judicial execution andenforced disappearances andtherefore, gives guarantee for theright to life.

Amidst this dark night ofthe disappeared, a ray of hopeflickers. n

*AILEEN BACALSO is theSecetary-General of the AsianFederation Against InvoluntaryDisappearances (AFAD).

AFAD member Daisy Valerio, fourth from left, and other international humanrights activists pause for a moment of silence for victims of enforceddisappearances all over the world.

..................................................................

Photo: AFAD


KARAPATANAlamin ang inyong mga

Hanggang ngayon ay nananatiling nasa panganib ang buhayat seguridad ng mga bokal na tumutuligsa sa mga tiwalingopisyal ng pamahalaan.

Sa gitna ng sitwasyong ito, pinagtibay ng Korte Supremaang ‘writ of amparo’ at mga kaukulang alituntunin nito upangbigyan ng dagdag na legal na proteksyon ang mga taongkasalukuyang nilalabag o posibleng malabag ang mga karapatandahil sa kanilang pampulitikang paniniwala o dahil sapagsisiwalat ng katotohanan.

Nagsimulang magkabisa ang ‘writ of amparo’ noong Oktubre24, taong kasalukuyan.

Ano ang ‘writ of amparo’?Ito ay isang petisyong pwedeng isampa sa korte kapag

nilabag, nilalabag, o posibleng malabag ang karapatan sa buhay,kalayaan, at seguridad ng isang tao dahil sa iligal na aksyon opagpapabaya ng mga opisyal at kawani ng pamahalaan o ng

mga pribadong indibi-dwal o grupo.

Kasama sa pino-proteksyunan ng writ of

amparo ang mga kaso ng‘extralegal’ na pagpatay at

sapilitang pagkawala opagdukot.

Ibig sabihin, pwedeitong gamitin ng isangtaong batay sa ilangebidensya at pangyayariay naniniwalang may

banta sa kanyangbuhay, kaligtasan, at

kalayaan mula sa mga tauhan ng gobyerno o kaya ay mula sa mgapribadong indibidwal.

Pwede itong isampa ng mga taong sa tingin nila ayminamanmanan sila, nakatanggap ng ‘death threats,’ o napag-alamang posible silang ipapatay o ipadukot.

Kung ang indibidwal naman ay nabiktima na ng ganitong mgapaglabag, pwede itong isampa ng mga kamag-anak, kaibigan, atmga pribadong organisasyon upang mailabas o maproteksyunanang biktima.

Sino ang pwedeng magsampa nito?

Ang petisyon ay pwe-deng isumite ng mismongbiktima o posibleng biktimaat kung hindi naman itopossible, pwedeng mag-sampa (batay sa pagka-kasunod-sunod) ay ang:

a.) S i n u m a n gmiyembro ngpamilya, asawa,anak, o mgamagulang, ng biktima;

b.) Mga kamag-anak hanggang sa ika-apat na lebel kung walaang mga binanggit sa naunang talata;

k.) Sinumang mamamayan, organisasyon, asosasyon, oinstitusyon kung walanang matagpuang kamag-anak ang biktima

Saan ito pwedeng isampa?Ang petisyong ito ay

pwedeng isampa sa korteanumang araw at anumang

oras. Isusumite ito sa RegionalTrial Court (RTC) kung saan

naganap ang paglabag o anumangelemento nito o kaya naman ay sa

Sandiganbayan, Court of Appeals, atsa Korte Suprema.

Ang writ na ito ay pwedengipatupad sa anumang bahagi ng

Pilipinas.Walang ‘docket fees’ o anumang

bayaring kailangan para maisampaang petisyong ito.

Ano dapat ang laman ng petisyon?

a.) Ang personal na sirkumstansya opagkakakilanlan ng nagpe-petisyon;

b.) Pangalan at iba pang pagkakakilanlan ngtaong responsable sa pagbabanta, aktwal napaglabag o pagpapabaya at kung hindi alamang pangalan, ang inirereklamo aypwedeng tukuyin sa

Writ of AmparoMAHIGIT DALAWANG taon na mula nang

magsimula ang sunod-sunod na pagdukotat pagpatay sa mga aktibista at mga

mamamahayag sa ilalim ng administrasyong Arroyongunit hanggang ngayon ay wala pa ring kasongnaresolba at wala pa ring napaparusahan.


Ang Korte Suprema ang magtatalaga ng mgapribadong institusyong papayagang magbigayng ganitong proteksyon.

b.) Inspection Order- kapag hiniling ng nagpepetisyon atnakapagdaos ng pagdinig hinggil dito, maaaring ipag-utos ng korte ang pagpasok sa isang lupa o ari-arianupang ma-inspeksyon, magalugad, o malitratuhan ito.

Ang mosyon upang mahalughog ang isang lugar aydapat na may kasamang sinumpaang pagsasalaysayng mga saksing may personal na kaalaman hinggil sapagkawala ng biktima.

Halimbawa nito ay ang pag-inspeksyon sa mga kampoat mga ‘safehouses’ na posibleng pinagdalhan sa mgadinukot na indibidwal.

k.) Production Order - kapag hiniling ng nagpepetisyon atnakapagdaos ng pagdinig hinggil dito,pwedeng utusan ng hukuman angsinumang may hawak o may kontrolsa anumang dokumento, libro, litrato,o anumang nahahawakang bagaymaging ito ay nasa anyongelektroniko o ‘digital’ nanaglalaman ng ebidensyang maykinalaman sa petisyongnakasampa.

d.) Witness Protection Order – maaari ringirekomenda ng korte ang pagpasokng mga saksing may kaugnayan sapetisyon sa Witness Protection, Security,and Benefit Program ng Department ofJustice (DOJ). Pwede rin silang i-endorsong korte sa ibang ahensya oitinalagang pribadong institus-yong maaaring magbigay sakanila ng proteksyon. n

pamamagitan ng inaakalang yunit, opisina, o grupongkinabibilangan nito;

k.) Ang karapatan sa buhay, kalayaan, at seguridad nanalabag o posibleng malabag at kung paano nilabag onanganib ang karapatang ito; kasama ang paglalahad ngmga kaugnay na pangyayari sa pamamagitan ng‘affidavits;’

d.) Kung may naganap na imbestigasyon, ang pangalan,tirahan at iba pang pagkakakilanlan ng mga opisyal nanagsagawa ng pagsisiyasat, ang kondukta at paraan ngpag-iimbestiga at anumang ulat kaugnay ngimbestigasyon;

e.) Ang mga aksyon at remedyong sinubukan ngnagpepetisyon upang malaman ang kinaroroonan onangyari sa biktima at ang identidad ng taong responsablesa paglabag, pagbabanta, o pagpapabaya; at

g.) Ang hihilinging remedyo ay maaaring pangkalahatangkahilingan para sa iba pang makatarungang remedyo.

Pag-isyu ng ‘Writ’Kapag nakita ng

korte na may sapatna dahilan upangmaglabas ng ‘writ’u p a n gmaproteksyunan omabigyang lunas ang paglabagsa mga nabanggit na karapatangpantao, maglalabas ang‘clerk’ ng korte o angmismong hukom ng‘writ’ at magtata-laga ito ng opisyalna maghahatid nitosa lahat ng partidosa kaso.

Dapat dingnakasaad sa inisyung ‘writ’ ang petsa at oras ng paglilitis na dapatgawin nang hindi lalampas sa pitong (7) araw pagkatapos ilabasang nasabing ‘writ.’

Kapag natanggap na ng inirereklamo ang ‘writ,’ meron siyang72 oras upang magsumite ng sagot sa korteng nag-isyu nito.

Mga Pansamantalang RemedyoPagkatapos maisampa ng petisyon at bago ang pinal na

desisyon hinggil dito, ang korte o ang huwes ay pwedeng magbigayng mga sumusunod na pansamantalang remedyo upangmapangalagaan ang kaligtasan ng mga saksi at ng nagpepetisyon:

a.) Temporary Protection Order – pwedeng iutos ng korte namaproteksyunan ang biktima, nagpepetisyon, at mgamiyembro ng kanilang pamilya sa isang opisina nggobyerno o itinalagang pribadong institusyong kayangpangalagaan ang kanilang kaligtasan. Kung angnagpetisyon ay isang asosasyon o organisasyon, angproteksyong ito ay pwedeng ibigay sa mga opisyal nito.


EVEN WITH the on-going peace negotiationsbetween the government and the Muslimrebels, the security situation in Mindanaois so volatile that even a small incidentcould trigger an all-out war.

RENEWEDWar in Mindanao

RENEWED COSTOFFENSIVE,

n By Sitti Nur-Aina L. Jaji

How much more thekidnapping of a foreign priestand the beheadings of soldiers?

Recently, these twoincidents led to the unleashingof the military arsenal inBasilan, Mindanao whichpredictably resulted again inloss of more lives, destructionof property and displacement ofthousands of civilians.

...................................................................

The kidnappingThe Philippines once again

caught the attention of theinternational community withthe latest kidnapping incidentof a foreign national. Fr.Giancarlo Bossi, 57, the parishpriest of Payao town,Zamboanga Sibugay was seizedon June 10, 2007 while on hisway to celebrate mass inBarangay Bulawan in the samemunicipality. The Italian priestwas a member of the PontificalInstitute for Foreign Missions(or Pontificio Instituto MissioniEstere, PIME).

The only difference this timewas that a renegade Muslimseparatist, not the Abu SayyafGroup (ASG), admitted to thekidnapping. Also, that it wascommitted in ZamboangaSibugay Province and notanywhere in Basilan whereprevious high profilekidnapping cases wereinstigated.

Rescue operationWith pressure from the

international community, Mrs.Arroyo ordered the rescueoperations. Military operationsensued in pursuit of the possibleperpetrators. This is the usualscenario whenever kidnappinghappens in the country.

What was unusual however

was the fact that the militaryoperations were notconcentrated in ZamboangaSibugay Province, despitereports that the abducted priestwas being held somewherewithin the province. A top policeofficial received a text messagedisclosing that Fr. Bossi wasbeing kept in Kulasian cave in

Payao, Zamboanga Sibugay.Yet the military operation washighlighted in Basilan Province,even when the League ofProvincial Mayors pointed outthat the priest had not beensighted in Basilan. One mayorexplained that it was difficult totransfer Fr. Bossi due to theinclement weather.

Why insist on Basilan?Basilan Province, an island-

province south of ZamboangaCity, is the home turf of the AbuSayyaf Group (ASG). Set up inthe early 1990s, the ASG is thesmallest of the Muslim rebelgroups in the Philippines, with400 members. But it is one ofthe most notorious – if not themost notorious – rebel groupsoperating in the country. It isblamed for kidnappings,bombings, and beheadings inthe Philippines. The US haslisted the group as a terroristorganization and says it haslinks to Al-Qaeda, the primarysuspect in the 9/11 attacks in theUS.

Immediately after the said

An end to war: NCR-based Muslims gather at the Blue Mosque in Taguig Cityfor a prayer rally, August 31, 2007. Photos: Anak Mindanao website

The Philippinegovernment alsotagged the Abu Sayyafas a terroristorganization despiteallegations that it is acreation of thePhilippine military asa paramilitary group.


terror strikes, the United Statesspearheaded a global campaignagainst terrorism to which thePhilippine government, beinga close US ally, has faithfullycommitted its political andmilitary support.

It was also under the auspicesof the war on terror that the USgovernment through theVisiting Forces Agreement(VFA) has poured millions ofdollars worth of military aidand technical assistance to thePhilippine military’s counter-insurgency drive against theASG.

The Philippine governmentalso tagged the Abu Sayyaf as aterrorist organiza-tion despiteallegations that it is a creationof the Philippine military as aparamilitary group.

July 10 “Ambush”In what was claimed as an

effort to rescue the kidnappedpriest, members of the 1st MarineBrigade carried out an“intelligence-driven” operationin Basilan on July 10, 2007. Thetarget was an alleged ASG camp.

The ensuing clash betweenthe military and members of theBangsamoro Islamic ArmedForces (BIAF) of the MoroIslamic Liberation Front (MILF)in Brgy. Guinanta, Al-Barka,Basilan lasted eight hours. Theencounter claimed the lives offive (5) members of the BIAF-MILF and twenty three (23) fromthe Marine troops. Severalothers were wounded.

At about 5:00 in theafternoon, a ceasefire wasproclaimed. Both forcesconducted clearing operationsthen withdrew from the area ofhostilities, bringing along withthem their respective woundedand casualties.

But the following day, theMILF found seven (7) deadbodies, all of them beheaded.Six (6) were identified asmembers of the Marine troops;the seventh was that of a 69-year-old Imam (Muslim religiousleader) identified as MatarulHakanul.

The MILF accused theMarines of the Imam’sbeheading while disclaiming

responsibility for the beheadingof the Marines.

This incident raisedwidespread indignation fromdifferent sectors of societyespecially frompoliticiansand them i l i t a r yand was laterpublicized as an“ambush” ofmilitary troops bythe Muslim rebelsresulting in the death of 14marines, ten of which weredecapitated.

In reaction to thebeheadings, the military withthe approval of the President,launched an all-out offensiveagainst the alleged perpetrators,the ASG, despite pleas from thereligious groups and peaceadvocates for the authorities toexplore other means to resolvethe conflict to avert furtherescalation of hostilities notonly in Basilan but in otherareas of Mindanao.

It should also be notedthat the target of the July10 operation which wassupposedly an alleged ASGcamp turned out to be alegitimate MILF territory

recognized by the Governmentof the Republic of thePhilippines (GRP) under its on-going peace talks with the MILF.

Ceasefire agreementThrough the course of the

on-going three-year peaceprocess between the MILF andthe GRP, both parties and theirr e s p e c t i v ea r m e dforces

In search of peace: A prayer rally held at the Blue Mosque, Taguig City, August 31, 2007. Photo: Anak Mindanao website


Photo: PhilRights photobank

Triumphalism: To a lot of Muslims, military presence in Mindanaohas not contributed to their yearning for a peaceful homeland.


have agreed to and adopted theGround Rules for a CeasefireAgreement. Under this protocol,AFP troop movements in MILFareas require prior coordinationwith the rebels and vice-versa.

Evidently, the CeasefireAgreement was not honoredwhen members of the 1st MarineBrigade conducted the July 10operation in a recognized MILFarea without the required priorcoordination.

However, media andmilitary reports on the July 10incident failed to mention thisviolation of the ceasefireagreement but instead focusedon the beheadings of themarines. This could beexplained by the fact that thepress was more preoccupiedwith the sensational aspect of theevent and the military was tooeager to generate negativepublicity against the rebels.

The media attention on thebeheadings also overshadowedthe obvious conclusion that theJuly 10 operations which wassupposedly an “intelligence-driven” rescue attempt for Fr.Bossi ended up as a disaster fromall perspectives.

Clearly, the costly operationwhich was paid for with humanlives on the sides of both thesoldiers and the rebels, did notresult in the freedom of Fr.Bossi. Neither did it pinpoint thepriest’s whereabouts. Its onlyachivement was to underminethe on-going peace negotiationsthat have been painstakinglybuilt not only by the govern-ment and the MILF but also bythe people belonging todifferent peace movements inMindanao.

Fr. Bossi’s releaseEventually, Fr. Bossi was

freed unharmed in Lanao delNorte on July 19, 2007. It wasindeed a timely occasion forMrs. Arroyo’s scheduled travelabroad on the same week.Hence, it was no surprise thatshe was lavished with praisesand positive feedback from theinternational communityduring that time.

Meanwhile, the July 10beheading led to the formation

of a joint GRP and MILF fact-finding mission. In the end, thejoint panel concluded that theASG was responsible for thegrisly crime.

Again, it was a timelycoincidence that while theArroyo administration gainsinternational recognition forthe safe release of Fr. Bossi, theASG gained further notorietyfor the beheadings of the tenmarines.

Obviously, the Philippinegovernment needed to highlightthe role of the ASG before theinternational community tosustain its popularity among thecountries that comprise the anti-terror “coalition of the willing,”especially the United States. TheAbu Sayyaf is the Philippine’sace up its sleeves, its mostvaluable asset in cementing itsties with the US that translatesto financial assistance andmilitary support.

In fact, aside from themillions of dollars of militaryaid and technical assistance forthe counterinsurgency againstthe Abu Sayyaf through the

VFA, the US government hasgiven the biggest reward (Php450 million) to Filipinoinformants that led to the killingof ASG chief Khadaffy Janjalani.

Moreover, the US troopsstationed in Sulu are givingassistance to Filipino troops thatare tracking down the AbuSayyaf. The Americans had beentraining Filipino soldiers in thefight against terrorism since2002. A US official claims thatthe exchange of militaryexpertise between the twocountries has hastened andintensified the campaign againstterrorism in Sulu.

Renewed offensiveBased on the MILF-GRP joint

panel findings on the July 10beheadings, the governmentlaunched a series of militaryoffensives against the indictedperpetrators, the ASG and raideda camp of the group. From mid-July to August this year, nine(9) battalions were deployed inBasilan alone to hunt 80 ASGfighters.

These military operations

resulted in the displacement of2,295 families from eight (8)municipalities in Basilan.

As usual, the ensuing con-flict left a trail not only ofviolence and bloodshed butmassive human rights viola-tions affecting the people ofBasilan and Sulu.

Reckoning the cost

Right to SecurityValuing one’s right to be

secured of his/ her person, theUniversal Declaration ofHuman Rights (UDHR)pronounced under Art. III,“Everyone has the right to life,liberty and security of person.”

Human security means, first,safety from chronic threats suchas hunger, disease and repres-sion. And second, protectionfrom sudden and hurtfuldisruptions in patterns of dailylife (whether in homes, jobs,communities). Loss of humansecurity can be human-made(wrong policy choices), stemfrom the forces of nature, orboth.

The all-out war policy of thegovernment in Basilan and Suluhas caused human insecurityamong the populace, sowingfear and threats of oppressionfrom State actors:

“…soldiers were firingindiscriminately although theyknew where the ASG weresituated. The soldiers are onlytough with the civilians. Earlierat 2:00 in the morning (August17), they took with them 9women, 8 men and somechildren from Tanjung. Untilnow, they are still detained at104th brigade.” (Aug 18, 2007)

“Some members of the AFP areconducting house to housesearch in Mubarakat, IsabelaCity, Basilan tonight. This is abrazen violation. Or is thisanother form of legalized anti-terror campaign?” (Aug 19,2007)

“Full military operations. Theycapture any suspected rebels,many now detained in thebrigade. IDPs are multiplying.

Evacuation centers have become home to a lot of Muslim families trappedin the midst of war in Mindanao. Photo: PhilRights photobank


Cong. Jikiri in Sulu told theMNLF not to fight and leavethe ASG to roam the junglesto hide. If MNLF people willnot fight, our people will bevictims: captured, robbed, ourhouses burned, and perhapsour women raped.” (Aug 19,2007)1

Right of AbodeThe freedom to choose the

place of residence is a dulyaccorded right of every personenshrined in different humanrights instruments, both at thenational and international level.

The right to freedom ofmovement and residence withinthe borders of each state hasbeen recognized under Article13 of the Universal Declarationof Human Rights (UDHR).

In the same manner, the 1987Philippine Constitution pro-vides that the liberty of abodeand of changing the same withinthe limits prescribed by lawshall not be impaired exceptupon lawful order of the court(Art III, Sect 6 thereof).

Nonetheless, alleged en-counters between the militaryand the ASG have dramaticallyincreased the number ofinternally displaced persons(IDP) in the area. Severalalleged encounters includingtwo incidents on August 7 and 8resulted in the forced evictionof 14,888 persons or individualsor 2,934 families from fifteen (15)barangays in four (4) muni-cipalities.

Right to EducationAccording to the United

Nations (UN), education iscrucial for the holisticdevelopment of every personand instrumental in realizingtheir other rights.

Article 26 of the UDHR statesthat “Everyone has the right toe d u c a t i o n … E l e m e n t a r yeducation shall becompulsory…”

Moreover, Article 13 of theInternational Convention onEconomic, Social and CulturalRights (ICESCR) further stressesthe (1) recognition of the rightto education and that (2,a)Primary education shall be

compulsory, free and availableto all.

At the national level, ArticleXIV of the Philippine Consti-tution states, “The State shallprotect and promote the rightof all citizens to quality edu-cation at all levels and shall takeappropriate steps to make sucheducation accessible.”

But during the militaryoperations in Basilan and Sulu,eleven (11) elementary schoolswere forced to shut down. Asidefrom this, public schools areusually converted as evacuationcenters during armed conflictsresulting in suspension ofclasses for indefinite periods oftime.

Right to FoodAs the number of innocent

civilians affected by thehostilities in Basilan and Sulugrew, different sectors of societyappealed to the Arroyogovernment to order a cessationof military operations.

Instead, PGMA went on topronounce an all-out war inBasilan and Sulu and orderedthe military to continuepursuing the ASG elementsresponsible for the beheadingof the marines.

Along with the declarationof a news blackout in Basilan, afood blockade was also enforcedby the military in somelocalities in the province.

Right to ReligionOf equal importance is the

right to religion which theUDHR affirms under Article 18:“Everyone has the right tofreedom of thought, conscienceand religion…this rightincludes the right to manifest hisreligion or teaching, practice,worship and observance”

Similarly, the PhilippineConstitution recognizes underArticle III, Section 5 “The freeexercise and enjoyment ofreligious profession andworship, withoutdiscrimination shall forever beallowed….”

In its campaign against theNew People’s Army (NPA), ithas been the practice of thegovernment to declareceasefires during Christianholidays especially duringChristmas season.

The operation against theASG in Basilan and Sulu wasconducted during the Islamicobservance of Ramadan. Asquoted in the news, Defense Sec.Teodoro said, “Militaryoperations will still be mountedagainst Abu Sayyaf bandits in Suluand Basilan even during theMuslim holy month of Ramadanwhich begins on Sept 15”.

This blatant disregard of oneof the main pillars of Islam(fasting during Ramadan)showed the cultural insensi-tivity of the government and aclear violation of the Muslimpeoples’ right to religion. Thegovernment should bereminded that this right is acomposite of the right to one’sbelief and the exercise of suchbelief.

In the final analysis, the UNpointed out that the two majorcomponents of human securityare freedom from fear andfreedom from want:

“The battle of peace has to befought on two fronts. The first is thesecurity front where victory spellsfreedom from fear. The second is theeconomic and social fronts, wherevictory means freedom from want.Only victory on both fronts canensure the world of an enduringpeace…No provisions that can bewritten into Charter will enable theSecurity Council to make the worldsecure from war if men and womenhave no security in their homes andtheir jobs.” (1945,US Secretary ofState).3 n

SOURCESSOURCESSOURCESSOURCESSOURCES

Moro Human Rights Center(MHRC) in Basilan

1 Testimonies of the paralegalvolunteers of the PhilippineAlliance of Human RightsAdvocates (PAHRA) inZAMBASULTA area inMindanao.

3 Overview, Philippine HumanDevelopment Report 2005

NUR L. JAJI, coordinates theeducation bureau of the PhilippineAlliance of Human Rights Advocates(PAHRA).

Anak Mindanao Party-list leaders speak at a prayer rally for peace in theirhomeland, August 31, 2007. (Photo: Anak Mindanao website)

...................................................................

The Philippinegovernmentneeded tohighlight the roleof the ASG beforethe internationalcommunity tosustain itspopularity amongthe countries thatcomprise the anti-terror “coalition ofthe willing.”

.................................................................


Isang Kwento ng Pakikibaka

n Ni EMY TAPIRU

PAANO KUNG tutol ang mga tao sakomunidad sa kaunlarang itinutulak ngpamahalaan?

Paano kung ang tingin nila rito ay hindikaunlaran kundi magiging mitsa ng

pagkasira ng kanilang kabuhayan at kapaligiran?Hanggang saan nila ipaglalaban ang kanilangkarapatan?

PACQUET, KASIBU,ANG BARIKADA SA

NUEVA VIZCAYALaban sa Malakihang Pagmimina

Noong Agosto 29, 2007,Miyerkules, ilang mgakatutubong lalaki at babae ngKasibu, Nueva Vizcaya angnasaktan nang piliting gibainng mga tauhan ng OxianaPhilippines Inc.(OPI), isangAustralyanong kumpanya ngpagmimina, ang dalawangbuwan nang nakatayongbarikada ng mga taga-Kasibuupang mapigil ang operasyon

ng naturang kumpanya sakanilang komunidad.

Naiwasan lamang angpagputok ng mas matindingkarahasan sa pagitan ng 1,000residente at mga tauhan ng OPIat mga miyembro ng Citizens’Armed Forces GeographicalUnit (CAFGU) na inupahan ngkumpanya nang mamagitanang mahigit isandaang tauhanng Philippine National Police(PNP).

Maliwanag angmensahe ng mgataga-Kasibu sa mganais magmina sakanilang lugar, ayawlamang makinig ngmga kumpanya at ngpamahalaan.( JM VILLERO)


Upang mabawasan angtensyon at mapigil angpanibagong karahasan, ipinag-utos ni Lito Atienza, kalihim ngDepartment of Environmentand Natural Resources (DENR)na maupo sa isang dayalogo anglahat ng partidong sangkot saproblema at pansamantala aytigilan muna ng Oxiana angpagpasok ng mga kagamitan sapagmimina sa nasabing lugar.

Kaso laban sa mga taga-KasibuBago pa ang insidenteng ito,

dalawang beses nang nabigongmagpasok ang OPI ng mgaheavy equipment at iba pang mgakagamitan para sa nakatakdangpaghahanap at pagmimina nitong ginto at copper sa mgabarangay ng Pao, Kakidugen, atDine sa bayan ng Kasibu.

Dahil sa pagharang ng mgataga-Kasibu sa pagpasok ngOxiana sa exploration site,idinemanda ng naturangkumpanya sina KapitanMariano Maddela ng BarangayPao, Kapitan Alejo Tuguinay ngBarangay Kakiduguen, KapitanManuel Binuya ng Dine,Felimon Blanco ng Pacquet at18 pang mga lider ng KasibuInter-tribal Response forEcological Development(KIRED) na siyang nangungunasa paglaban sa planongpagmimina.

Noong Hulyo 23, dahil sakasong isinampa ng OPI sapamamagitan ng kinatawannitong si Lourdes Dolinen,naglabas ng 20-day temporaryrestraining order (TRO) si JudgeJose Godofredo Naui laban samga nasabing opisyal ngKasibu at mga lider ng KIREDat binawalan silang lumapitman lamang sa barikada.

Makalipas ang mahigitdalawang linggo, Agosto 9,naglabas naman ang korte ngpreliminary injunction laban samga lider ng Kasibu at ipinag-utos ang pag-alis sa barikadangpumipigil sa pagpasok ng OPIsa exploration site.

Hindi pinanghinaan ng loobang mga taga-KIRED sa kabilang mga desisyong ito ng kortebagkus ay lalo pa nilangipinakita ang kanilang suporta

sa kanilang mga lider sapamamagitan ng pagsama sakanila tuwing may pagdinig sakaso.

Nito lamang Oktubre ngtaong kasalukuyan ay ibinasuraang kasong injunction laban samga pinuno ng KIRED sapagkatnapatunayang wala nang legalna personalidad si Dolinen paramaghabla dahil nabili na ngRoyalco Resources Limited(Royalco), isa ringAustralyanong kumpanya, angOxiana.

Permit ng Oxiana / RoyalcoIginigiit ng mga taga-

Kasibung tutol sa pagmimina ngOxiana na hindi dapat nabigyanng pahintulot ang nasabingkumpanya dahil hindinakasama sa mga isinagawangkonsultasyon ang ibang tribu saKasibu at hindi rin lahat ng mgaBugkalot sa lugar ay nahingan

ng opinyon hinggil sa planongpagmimina.

Ang exploration site ay nasaloob ng ancestral domain ng mgaBugkalot kaya kailangan ngpagpayag ng mga katutubo saanyo ng Free, Prior, andInformed Consent (FPIC) bagomakapagsagawa ng anumangproyektong pangkaunlaran dito.

Unang nabigyan ng permitang OPI noon pang Hunyo 9,2003 (EP #11-000014) at may bisasa loob ng dalawang taon. Agadna nagpetisyon sa NationalCommission on IndigenousPeoples (NCIP) ang mga tao saKasibu sa pangunguna ninakapitan Maddela at Tuguinay atkinwestiyon ang nasabingpermit sapagkat hindi namandumaan sa proseso ng FPIC angOxiana.

Sa bisa ng mga ebidensyanginiharap ng mga tao, naglabasng permanent injunction order ang

Determinado ang mga taga-Kasibung huwag padaanin ang mgakagamitang pangmina ng OxianaPhilippines, Inc (OPI). Sumuportarin sa mga residente ang mga non-government organizations (NGOs)at mga taong simbahan tulad ngmadreng ito.

Photo: ALYANSA TIGIL MUNA (ATM)

Gumamit ng mga bayarang armadong tauhan ang Oxiana sa kanilangpagpipilit na makapasok sa exploration site. Photo: ALYANSA TIGIL MUNA (ATM)

Nakipagpulong ang mga taga-KIRED sa mga kinatawan ng Alyansa TigilMina (ATM) upang mapalakas ang kampanya. JM VILLERO


NCIP laban sa OPI atpansamantalang natahimik angmga usap-usapan hinggil sabalak na eksplorasyon ngOxiana.

Ngunit makalipas lamangang ilang panahon, inimbitahanng NCIP sila Maddela atTuguinay upang sumama sapaghahanda ng financial workplanupang makapagsagawa ng FPICsa mga maaapektuhan ngpagmimina ng OPI. Tatlongbeses nagpunta sa opisina ngNCIP ang mga kapitan ngKasibu kasama ang maramingmga residente upang ipaabot sanasabing ahensya na tutol silasa pagsasagawa ng FPIC dahiluna, meron nang permanentinjunction laban sa OPI atpangalawa, maramingginagawang panlilinlang angkumpanya para makuha angpagpayag ng mga tao.

Sa kabila nito, nagpumilitpa rin ang Oxiana at nagbigayng pondo para sa pagsasagawang mga konsultasyon bilangbahagi ng FPIC. Naganap angtatlong pulong noong Abril,2007 sa Sitio Singkang,Kakiduguen kung saanmaraming mga residente angpabor sa pagmimina.

Kaya noong Hunyo 19, 2007,na-isyuhan ng FPIC certificate ofcompliance ang Oxiana batay sainiharap nitong Memorandum ofAgreement (MOA) na maypetsang Abril 25, 2007, sapagitan ng kumpanya at mgaBugkalot na kinatawan nilaDante Taguem, Sintol Cammaat Roberto Cabarrougis.

Noon ding huling bahagi ngHunyo ng taong kasalukuyan,dahil daw may mga panahonghindi nagamit ang Oxiana sahawak nitong permit, hinilingnitong i-extend ng Mines andGeosciences Bureau (MGB) angpermiso nitong napaso na noonpang Hunyo 9, 2005. Pumayagsi MGB regional director JerryMangaoang at nagbigay ngdagdag na dalawampung (20)buwan, mula Hunyo 28, 2007hanggang Pebrero 27, 2009, parasa eksplorasyon ng OPI.

Subalit ang probisyong“availment of unused timecredit” ay wala sa implementingrules and regulations ng

Philippine Mining Act of 1995.Sapagkat minorya lamang

ang nakonsulta at naitsa-pweraang mga Ibaloi, Ifugao,Kalanguya, at iba pang mgatribung migrante, nagdesisyonang KIRED na itayo angbarikada sapagkat ito na lamangang nakikita nilang paraanupang mapigil ang napipintongpagmimina sa kanilangkomunidad.

Kaya noong Hulyo 2, unanginilagay ang barikada sabarangay road ng Paquet, angbarangay na madadaanan bagomarating sa Pao at Kakidugen.Palitan sa pagtao sa barikadaang mga residente ng walongbarangay na saklaw ng KIRED.Umisip din sila ng mga senyalesat porma ng komunikasyonpara sa iba’t-ibang sitwasyonlalo na kung may paakyat namga sasakyang may dalang mgamateryales para sa pagmimina.

Makalipas ang isang linggo,inilipat sa pribadong lupain niDonie Dugay at Armando

Guives ang barikada sapagkatkung ito ay nasa public road,malamang na makasuhan ngobstruction ang mganagbabarikada.

Ganunpaman, hinayaan parin ng mga taong dumaan angmga empleyado ng Oxianabasta wala silang dalang mgakagamitan at materyales ngunitpalihim pa ring nagpuslit ngmaliliit na gamit ang mgatauhan ng kumpanya.

Determinasyon at pagkakaisaNoong tinanong ang mga

taga-KIRED na nagbabarikadakung hanggang saan nilakayang dalhin ang laban samalakihang pagmimina,walang pag-aalinlangan angkanilang sagot, “habang meronkaming hininga.”

Ilang araw lamang mataposnila itong sambitin, naganap ngaang bayolenteng insidentenoong Agosto 29 at pinanga-tawanan nila ang kanilangbinitawang salita.

Noong araw na iyon,mahigit isang libong residenteng Kasibu ang naupo sakalsadang dadaanan ng mgasasakyang may dala ng mgakagamitan sa pagmimina,handang isakripisyo ang mgasarili, huwag lamang matuloyang eksplorasyon ng Oxiana.

Noong araw ding iyon,pinatunayan ng mga taga-Kasibung mas maka-pangyarihan ang mga

mamamayang nagkaisangipaglaban ang kanilangkarapatan kaysa anumangbatas, desisyon ng korte,programa ng pamahalaan atmaging karahasan mula sa mgamakapangyarihan.

Sa ngayon ay patuloy nanilalabanan ng mga taga-KIREDang pagpasok ng malakihangpagmimina sa pamamagitan ngpagdulog sa iba’t-ibang opisinaat institusyon ng pamahalaan atpag-iikot sa mga karatig nabarangay at bayan upangipaalam sa mga kababayan nilaang masamang epekto ng mina.

Sabi nga ng isang lider nila,“kung hindi namin ito gagawin,sayang naman ang pinag-hirapan naming pagbabarikadasa Pacquet.”

*Si EMY TAPIRU ay localcoordinator ng Philippine HumanRights Information Center(PhilRights) sa Nueva Vizcaya.Nagtrabaho rin siya sa PhilippineRural Reconstruction Movement(PRRM-Nueva Vizcaya) at sa SocialAction Center ng nasabingprobinsya.

MGA PINAGHALAWAN

Burgonio, T.J. Aussie firm told tostop mining exploration in Vizcaya.Phil. Daily Inquirer, August 30,2007, http://n e w s i n f o . i n q u i r e r . n e t /b r e a k i n g n e w s / r e g i o n s /view_article.php?article_id=85654

Gascon, M. Scores hurt asresidents, militiamen clash atmine site. Phil. Daily Inquirer,August 29, 2007.

Gascon, M. Court order won’t stoptribes’ fight vs mining firm. Phil.Daily Inquirer, July 30, 2007.

Perante, C. Mining firm’sinjunction bid granted. ManilaBulletin, August 12, 2007. http://w w w . m b . c o m . p h /archive_pages.php?url=http://www.mb.com.ph/issues/2007/0 8 / 1 2 /PROV20070812100119.html

Report from Nueva Vizcayapartners (PhilRights and KIRED),(unpublished)

Pansumandaling nakapahinga ang mga taga-Kasibu nang iutos ni LitoAtienza, kalihim ng DENR na itigil muna ng Oxiana ang pagtatangka nitongpumasok sa lugar na pagmiminahan. Photo: ALYANSA TIGIL MUNA (ATM)

JAY AZUCENA


CORPORATE SOCIAL

Ingraining people’s participation in

RESPONSIBILITY AND THEMINING INDUSTRYmining communities through CSR

Recapturing glory

IN THE early ‘80s,there were 58mines in theP h i l i p p i n e s ,accounting for

US$1.2 billion in mineralexport revenues. In 2004,there were only 16 activemines in the country, withmineral export revenueslower than US$500million.

n By ROEL A. ANDAG

Among other factors, the1996 Marcopper incident inMarinduque almost signed theobituary of Philippine miningindustry. Communities andcivil society demandedaccountability from thecompany for destroying theenvironment, causing physicalharm and demolishinglivelihoods. The entire industrysuffered from the bad press. Nopublic relations and reputationmanagement gimmick couldundo the damage. Miningoperations decelerated.

The Supreme Court decisiondeclaring the constitutionalityof contested provisions in theMining Act of 1995 resurrected

the industry. Prior to thedecision promulgated inJanuary 2004, newspaperreaders were bombarded withteasers heralding a glitteringcomeback.

Catch-words such as “newbreed of mining firms,”“paradigm shift,” “sustainablemining,” “responsible mining,”“environmentally soundmining practices” and “ecology-conscious mining regime”peppered press releases.

With mineral depositsvalued anywhere from US$90.8billion (identified minedeposits) to US$965 billion(including yet unidentified minedeposits), the Philippines couldeasily become the 5th miningpower in the world: globally 3rd

in gold, 4th in copper, 5th innickel, 6th in chromite.

Fully operational, themining industry is said to be theonly growth engine that willhelp government achieve at

.......................................................................................

Whether thecommitmentto CSR isauthentic ortoken needsto be probed.

Photos: Sibuyan ISLE, Inc.


least 7% annual economicgrowth rate. It is often reportedthat it is only at this rate ofeconomic growth that thecountry will be able tosignificantly combat poverty.Hence, mining has the prospectof obliterating poverty – at leastaccording to the government.Foreign direct investments willflow in, direct and downstreamjobs will be created, taxes androyalties will be paid. From itsdeathbed, the industry is poisedto spring to a glorious rebirth.

CSR: deodorant ordevelopment strategy?

There are birthing pains.Opposition to mining continues.A politically sensitive industrywith a smeared reputation, nomatter how heavily it invests inpublic relations, will not be ableto completely silence its critics.It has to prove its commitmentto a concept that the industrymay find anathema –sustainable development.

In the past, the solemotivation was to profit fromoperations. Today, a miningcompany contends with thepressures of satisfying itsinvestors by sustaining andaccelerating profit in the face offinite natural resources,maintaining industrial peace byensuring job satisfaction, andhelping address the socio-economic needs of the com-munities where they operate. Itis the third that can prove thethorniest of concerns. Localsbenefit from mass media and thepresence of civil societyorganizations whose educativeeffects empower the community,catalyzing them to become healthand environment advocates.

Despite their poverty,people in mining communitieshave been awakened by realitiesso as not to compromise theirintegrity and that of theirenvironment. For a miningcompany intending tocommence operations, free andprior informed consent, asprovided for in the Mining Act,can be difficult to obtain. For acompany with existingoperations, the community’scontinued approval is vital.

It is in this context ofheightened scrutiny and acuteenvironmental awareness thatmining companies acknow-ledge the relevance of corporatesocial responsibility (CSR). Asevidenced in corporate visionsand annual reports, miningcompanies have embraced CSR.Whether the commitment isauthentic or token needs to beprobed. It is also essential todifferentiate CSR fromphilanthropy.

Definitions of CSR abound.The prevailing concept is thatCSR is a corporation’s voluntaryaction to ensure the welfare ofits stakeholders, especially thatof the community where itoperates. In the words of theWorld Summit on SustainableDevelopment, CSR seeks “tominimize the negative andmaximize the positive impactsof business on sustainabledevelopment.”

Community-companypartnership

Shortly after the Mining Actwas upheld, former presidentFidel Ramos, under whoseadministration the law waspassed, reminded industrystalwarts: “The Supreme Courthas given the industry a freshlegal license. But only the localcommunities where miningcompanies operate can validateyour ‘social license.’” Ramosadded that the mining industry

can give flesh to peopleempowerment by involving thelocals in decision-making viamandatory consultation andmonitoring.

The operative word is“mandatory” and CSR stresses“voluntary.” Surely, people’sparticipation – where people areclosely involved in theeconomic, social, cultural andpolitical processes that affecttheir lives – has a place in CSR.People’s participation is anessential element of sustainabledevelopment.

CSR initiatives do notfollow cookie-cutter approach-es. Companies perhapsexchange notes on best practicesbut there is no leitmotif. At thispoint, there is neither global nornational CSR standardparticularly for application byextractive industries. Whilepromoting CSR innovations onthe one hand, this lack ofstandards makes company-to-company analysis and industrygeneralizations difficult. Indi-viduated approaches howeverbear a commonality – theattempt to engage stakeholders.It is only through genuinepeople’s participation that thecommunity can reap thebenefits of CSR.

Owing to the voluntarynature of CSR, people’sparticipation may be moredifficult to institutionalize incomparison with people’s

participation that is mandatedby law. It is therefore importantto determine mandated versusproactive people’s participa-tion. The latter plays a role inCSR.

In assessing levels ofpeople’s participation in CSR,the model shown in page 27 isproposed.

In Level 1 (Information), thecompany implements a CSRinitiative because it is the “inthing” to do. The purpose of theprogram is for branding and toobtain peer approval. Througha public service announcement,people in the community areinformed about the CSRprogram. No prior consultationwith the locals is made.

In Level 2 (Consultation),the company calls in thecommunity’s key opinionleaders to seek their views abouta proposed CSR project. Theproposed project is pre-designed by the company, readyfor implementation. Donemerely as a token gesture, theobjective of the consultationwith the community leaders isto let word-of-mouth spread theinformation about theprefabricated CSR project,making it appear that thecompany cares for communitywelfare. At best, CSR initiativeshatched at Level 1 and 2 stagesare one-shot engagements.

Level 3 (Deliberation) hasthe elements of Level 2: thecompany presents a predeter-mined CSR program based onpredetermined communityissues. The difference is thatpeople’s opinions are valuedand are accommodated beforethe CSR program is imple-mented. Here, the attendanceremains exclusive to companyrepresentatives and communityleaders.

In Level 4 (Decision-making) the communitypresides at the CSR’s agendatable. The company takes on therole of a learner. It listens to theunfettered flow of ideas basedon social realities prevailing inthe community. Participation isbroadened to includerepresentatives of all sectors ofthe community, if not everyone

Photo: Sibuyan ISLE, Inc.


The emphasis is oninformation provision. Noactual people’sparticipation takes place.

People’s views onpredetermined CSRinitiatives are solicited.People’s participationremains artificial, as thereis no assurance thatopinions they submit willbe factored into decision-making.

The company proactivelypursues people’sparticipation. This leveltakes an educativeapproach in encouragingand popularizingparticipation. With themain objective of achievingconsensus on specifiedCSR initiatives, people aregiven the opportunity todeliberate on explicitlyexpressed issues andoptions based onevidence. This is the firstlevel where CSR decision-making process becomestruly permeable as itacknowledges citizens’opinions and assures thatinput will be used inshaping decisions.

People are allowed toconceptualize andpropose CSR programs/projects based on theirown needs and priorities.The company asks peoplewhat these needs andpriorities are prior toembarking on particularcourses of action. In effect,citizens are given theopportunity to set the CSRagenda.

People are able to assessprogram/projectoutcomes. Enables themto investigate, based onavailable data, the impactof certain CSR initiativesvis-à-vis identified targets.The aim is to generatefurther input for project/program refinement.

LEVEL 1INFORMATION

LEVEL 2CONSULTATION

LEVEL 3DELIBERATION

LEVEL 4DECISIONMAKING

LEVEL 5EVALUATIONLEVELS OF PEOPLE’S PARTICIPATION IN CSR (ANDAG)

of legal age. The communitydetermines what CSR programis best suited to its situation.

The other role of thecompany is that of resourcepartner. It has the financial andtechnical capability to supportthe CSR program. Imple-mentation becomes a sharedresponsibility of the companyand the community. Both partieshave clear accountabilities.

Level 5 (Evaluation) is thelogical progression of Level 4.People are involved at every stepof the implementation process.They are equipped with tools thatthey can use in assessing theprogress of the program.Monitoring is continuallyconducted and evaluations aretimed at regular intervals.Company and communityrepresentatives are partnersensuring that the program fulfillsits identified objectives and ismeeting its targets. Feedback isthen fully integrated in fine-tuning the program.

The sense of ownershipinculcated in Levels 4 and 5 helpsensure the sustainability of theCSR program.

The 1% principle anddisabusing CSR

Its voluntary nature makesCSR an experimental tool – anopen workshop of innovationthat is also susceptible to misuseand abuse. CSR should never beused as a fig leaf to coveranomalies.

For CSR in the extractiveindustries to be successful, it hasto:

• Go hand in hand withcorporate accountability,meaning the companycomplies with what lawsdemand.

• Adhere to global CSRinstruments and standards.

• Be supported by people ofthe company at all levelsand backed by adequatebudget.

• Institutionalize dialoguebetween the company andthe community whereneeds and concerns arediscussed.

• Introduce high-impactlong-term solutions, notstopgap measures aimed atwindow-dressing for PR

and to mute criticism.• Avoid exploiting the

vulnerabilities of com-munity leaders, whetherofficial or tribal, especiallyin poor communities thatlack infrastructure andsocial services.

• Report its processes andresults in a way thatundergoes independentverification that validatesclaims, especially whenenvironmental integrityand human rights are atstake.

• Communicate openly andobjectively in a culturally-sensitive manner. Com-pany websites have to beresorted to only as se-condary reporting channelsbecause they are inacces-sible to local communities.

• Deter corruption bytransparently reporting tothe community its profitsand taxes due to the localand national governments.

• Promote unity in thecommunity, not polari-zation.

It is not at all bad to use CSR

as one of the pillars proppingup the launching pad of themining industry’s secondcoming. The potentials ofmining are staggering. Miningcompanies will make asubstantial difference in thelives of poor communities ifthey will earmark to CSRprograms even just one percent(1%) of income before taxes. Atthe same time, as the miningindustry uses CSR as a PR tool,communities can likewiseleverage CSR as a blue chip inbargaining for just benefits andredress for past wrongs.

At its current valuation ofUS$90.8 billion to US$965billion, local communities canbenefit greatly from thiswindfall – but only if the siloshindering people’s partici-pation are torn down to giveway to authentic CSR. n

(The author consults for a Fortune500 company and other clients. Thisarticle reflects his personal opinion.Feedback at [email protected].)

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IT STARTED as a peaceful picket of anti-miningadvocates in Sitio Olango, Brgy. España, SanFernando, Sibuyan Island. But by mid-morningof October 3, 2007, an environmentalist towncouncilor was gunned down by an employee of

Sibuyan Nickel Properties Development Corporation(SNPDC).

PEOPLE’SSibuyan Island:

RESISTANCE TOPLUNDER ENDSIN DEATHn By RODNE GALICHA

Martyred advocateCouncilor Armin R. Marin,

42, was shot in the head byMario Kingo in front ofhundreds of anti-miningpicketers at 10:30 AM. Marindied while he was being rushedto the hospital.

He is the 23rdenvironmental activist to bekilled under theArroyo administration.

The October 3 picket was inopposition to the miningactivities being set by FilipinasTop Rock Mines and to the off-take agreement of BHP Billitonwith SNPDC and PelicanResources Ltd of Australia. Thepicketers were also protestingthe Department of Environmentand Natural Resources, whichhad approved the cutting of69,709 trees in the area. It was

during the negotiations,between the picketers andrepresentatives of the miningcompany, when severalwitnesses saw Kingo with a gun.

The perpetrator fled fromthe crime scene with the help ofsecurity guards employed by themining firm. The following day,he turned himself in at theprovincial office of thePhilippine National Police.Another suspect, Lea Ladica,was released by the police.According to eyewitnesses,Ladica, the information officerof SNPDC, was also armedduring the picket. (Analysisshowed that two shots werefired from the.38 caliber used byKingo. Witnesses however saythat they heard three gunshots.)

Marin had been a staunchanti-mining advocate evenbefore he was elected councilor.He was a member of SibuyanAton Manggad (SAM), which isnow the Sibuyan IslandSentinels League for theEnvironment (Sibuyan ISLE)Inc., and the Sibuyanons AgainstMining movement, an affiliateof the national anti-miningalliance Alyansa Tigil Mina(ATM). He constantly opposedmining operations andapplications in Sibuyan Island.His death is a big blow to theenvironmental movement in.........................................................................................

Town Councilor Armin R. Marin

Environmentalists and anti-mining advocates protesting outside the DENR office, October 27, 2007.Photo: ALYANSA TIGIL MUNA (ATM)

The struggleagainst the pillageof Sibuyan Islandcontinues, despitethe aggressivepromotion ofmining by theArroyoadministration.


Sibuyan. But it will not scare theanti-mining advocates in theisland. In fact, his death has onlystrengthened the people’sresolve to keep the island ofSibuyan from the rapacity oflarge-scale mining firms.

‘We will not give up,”vowed one of the anti-miningleaders, Benhur Macato.According to Macato, a retiredarmy major, “somebody hadalready shed blood. We mustnot fail Armin; he is a martyrand hero.”

Bishop Jose Corazon Talaocof the Diocese of Romblon, inexhorting the people to standfast on their advocacy, said that“The cry of the blood of ourbrother (Armin) is calling us topray fervently that no furtherdeath and injuries happen as wecontinue the struggle for thebetterment of our people.”

Marin’s death has not beenfor naught. For one, the mediaattention that resulted from thekilling has brought national andeven international attention tothe anti-mining struggle inSibuyan. At least two senatorsexpressed concern over thekilling. Sen. Loren Legarda hasexpressed support for thesuspension of mining activitiesin Sibuyan, and Sen. FrancisPangilinan condemned what hecalled a “brazen and treacherousact.”

The DENR, for its part,suspended the cutting of treesin the island. The special permitto cut trees was approved bythen-Secretary Angelo Reyes onJuly 27, 2007, shortly before hewas transferred to theDepartment of Energy. TheDENR however said it cannotcancel the special cutting permit.

Popular oppositionMining in Sibuyan Island has

always been opposed by themajority of its inhabitants.

On September 2, 2006, anisland-wide caravan rally washeld to protest the start of thedrilling and explorationactivities in Brgys. Taclobo andEspaña. The drilling/exploration had been approvedby the provincial government,through small-scale mining

permits issued to Philippine,Canadian and Australian large-scale mining companies. Some8,000 anti-mining advocatesfrom Sibuyan’s threemunicipalities (San Fernando,Magdiwang and Cajidiocan), aswell as advocates from Romblonand neighboring provinces,marched to the mining sites inthe said barangays to expresstheir opposition to thedestruction and pollution oftheir small island.

Opposition to mining is notonly confined among theresidents of Sibuyan, but also bythose who are already overseas-

based. The board of directors ofthe Chicago, USA basedRomblon Discussion List –Cultural, Livelihood andEducational Assistance forRomblon (RDL-CLEAR) recentlyvoted to support SAM’scampaign to have local andnational officials declare amining moratorium in the island.

RDL-CLEAR’s Honolulu-based president, Nic Musico,who is an environmentalist anda human rights advocate, says“Sibuyan is a very unique islandbecause of its biodiversity. Itshould be protected fromdestructive commercial

operations like medium/largescale mining and large-scalelogging. Local officials andPresident Arroyo shouldconsider the long-term effects oftheir decisions on theenvironment and livelihood ofthe people of Sibuyan.”

More anti-mining rallieswere held in the island, includingthe caravan on March 11, 2007,which was participated in bymore than 2,000 advocates. OnJune 9, 2007, some 3,000 peoplegathered to oppose the ironmining operations of JKLBrothers Mineral Ore QuarryingEnterprises in Brgy. Mabini, SanFernando. JKL is operating inpartnership with Ore AsiaMining Development Corpo-ration. Its area of operationextends over 3.36 hectares, for aperiod of two years. Environ-mentalists are particularlyincensed that while its permit isfor small-scale mining, JKL hasbeen using heavy equipment inits mining operations in clearviolation of the law.

Nickel-rich islandSibuyan has an inferred

nickel resource of 7.26 milliontons. This sizable nickel reservehas naturally attracted anumber of multinationalmining companies.

June 9, 2007 protest in Sibuyan: “Sa mina sila ang yayaman. Kung wala nang miminahin, saan tayo pupulutin?”Photo: Sibuyan ISLE, Inc.

Anti-mining activists protesting during BHP Billiton’s Annual General As-sembly in London, October 26, 2007. Photo: Sibuyan ISLE, Inc.


Canadian Altai Resources‘owns’ the site through its ownAltai-Philippines. TheAustralian Pelican Resources,through its Sunshine Gold Pty.Ltd., with Sun-Pacific Resourcesand All-Acacia Resources (nowSNPDC),1/ both through theirlocal subsidiaries, were grantedtwo Small-Scale Mining Permitseffective for two (2) years. Thesemining operations are all inBrgy. Taclobo, San Fernando.The permit for All-Acacia covers200,000 square meters, while thepermit for Sun-Pacific covers155,800 square meters. Thesepermits allow the companies toextract 50,000 metric tons ofnickel ore per year, or a total of200,000 metric tons for twooperations. These are, in effect,large-scale operations disguisedas small-scale mining.

To date, there are threeapproved small-scale miningoperations (with foreignfinanciers), two pendingmineral productions agreement(MPSA) applications in fourareas, one pending explorationpermit (EP) application in themunicipalities of Cajidiocan andMagdiwang, and two pendingmining pier constructionprojects in San Fernando. A totalof 13 plotted mining areas allover the island are open forapplication.

On August 7, 2007, anorganization called ForwardRomblon (FOROM) and Rom-blon Chamber of Commerce andIndustry (RCCI) sponsored aforum in San Fernando. It was

SIBUYAN is a crescent-shaped islandof Romblon Province , Philippines. Ithas an area of 445 km². Primaryforests cover 140 square kilometers,or 33% of the land area of Sibuyan.

Known for its biodiversity,Sibuyan has been dubbed by localand international natural scientistsas the Galapagos of Asia. Itssignificance to the world’s animaland plant diversity cannot be takenlightly.

Exact figures on the number ofplant species are hard to give, asbiologists continue to stumble uponspecies yet unidentified by thescientific community. In one study,the National Museum identified1,551 trees in a single hectare, with123 species of trees. Of this number,54 are found nowhere else in theworld. Sibuyan’s forest has been

ASIA’S GALAPAGOS

proclaimed as the world’s densestforest. Scientists have yet to fullycatalog the land-dwelling mammals,reptiles, and rodents that can befound in the island. Sibuyan sheltersseveral threatened and endangeredspecies.

ostensibly held “to help clarifythe issue of mining.” However,the forum was a blatant pitch formining companies.

During the forum, MayorNanette Tansingco announcedthat she will sign miningbusiness permits anytime,because the documents arealready complete. Her words area complete turnaround from herJuly 4, 2007 assurance that she“will never be pro-mining.”

Because the anti-miningadvocates were not given achance to present theirperspective, people walked outfrom the forum.

Sibuyanons are particularlyconcerned over the continuedopening up of their island tomore mining operations.

Recently, SR Metals, Inc.(owned by a certain Alberto

Gutierrez and former Caloocancongressman Edgar Erice)conducted site visits in Brgy.España. The communitystrongly registered theiropposition to the impendingmining operation. Some of thosewho are actively opposed tomining have alreadyexperienced some forms ofharassment and strong-armtactics. For instance, thebarangay treasurer of Brgy.España was unceremoniouslyremoved from his job. His wife,also an anti-mining advocate,was fired from her job in thelocal day-care center. Anotherleader of the anti-miningmovement in the barangay isunjustly facing charges of directassault. (Sibuyanons, however,are relieved that SR Metals hasbeen recently ordered by theCourt of Appeals to stopoperating in Tubay.)

On September 3, 2007,another application forexploration was published. Theapplicant, Rommel Ibuna, wantsto explore nickel, iron, chromiteand other associated mineralsin seven barangays of themunicipalities of Magdiwangand Cajidiocan in the provinceof Romblon. The total area

applied covers 1,339.9 hectares.Mayor Ibarra Manzalaconcurred with the resolution ofthe Sangguniang Bayan ofMagdiwang (led by Vice MayorDenisa Repiso) rejecting Ibuna’sapplication. The four barangaysaffected likewise passedresolutions rejecting the project.In Cajidiocan, during theincumbency of Mayor AthenaMalapitan, a resolution rejectingthe project was approved by theSangguniang Bayan under then-Vice Mayor Nicasio Ramos(currently sitting as mayor).

The struggle against thepillage of Sibuyan Islandcontinues, despite the aggressivepromotion of mining by theArroyo administration. As longas the residents and otherenvironmental advocates stayfirm on their vision of a Sibuyanfree from the clutches of large-scale mining companies, so willthe Sibuyanons continue to havean island they call home.

*RODNE GALICHA is thecoordinator of Sibuyan ISLE, Inc.

ENDNOTE

1/ Identified as president of thecompany is Jose MiguelCabarrus.

August 7, 2007 protest in Sibuyan Photos: Sibuyan ISLE, Inc.

Spikes spread on the roads by pro-mining supporters intended to harmthe March 11 anti-mining march.

..................................................................

Google Earth


NE OF themore chal-l e n g i n gd e v e l o p -ments at

ASEAN CHARTER POSESRegional alliance takes tentative steps toward one dayDIFFICULT CHALLENGEpossibly forming an economic and political unionn By *VITIT MUNTARBHORN

Othe recent summit of theAssociation of SoutheastAsian Nations (Asean) inCebu was the pre-sentation of a report bythe Eminent PersonsGroup, chosen to putforward groundbreakingideas on the possibility ofan Asean charter.

The charter was to comeclose to being a constitution forAsean, a treaty to put theorganisation on a more certainfooting with a legal personality,rather than a mere conglome-ration of states. The report willnow be followed by the draftingof an Asean charter, although thedrafting process will be done bya different group of persons- amore technical group, drawnparticularly from ministrieswithin the Asean region.

There are a number of keyrecommendations in theEminent Persons Group report.

First, the objectives of Aseanare to be spelled out moreclearly. The report highlights“the active strengthening ofdemocratic values, good go-vernance, rejection of unconsti-tutional and undemocraticchanges of government, the ruleof law including internationalhumanitarian law, and respectfor human rights and funda-mental freedoms”. Inte-restingly, the report projects thevision of Asean as not only a“community” but also a future“union”.

While, of course, mention of

democracy and human rights ismuch welcome, on this frontthere has always been a hugegap between principles andpractices in Asean. The regionaland global public know all toowell the ambivalence towardssuch notions that is prevalent inmany national settings. As forthe possible aspiration tobecome a “union”, it is to beremembered that Asean hasestablished three communitiesas its pillars: the AseanEconomic Community, AseanSecurity Community and AseanSociocultural Community.

Under the first pillar, forexample, there is to be closerintegration on the flow ofgoods, services, investment andskilled labour. The AseanEconomic Community nowcovers 12 priority sectors withcross-sectoral integrationthrough common measures(common to the 12 sectors) andspecific measures targeted to thesector concerned. For instance,in one of the sectors, rubber-based products, the commonmeasures include elimination oftariffs for the older members ofAsean by 2007 and newermembers by 2012. These arecomplemented by agreementsregarding investments,promotion and skilled labour.

Specific measures includethe harmonisation of standardsand technical regulations. Yetthe notion of “union” suggestssomething more than theintegration of sectors. It drawsparallels from another regionalentity, the European Union,which has evolved from theprevious European commu-nities to become a moresynchronised body. Union, inthat sense, means a monetaryand political union.

Second, there is to beinstitutional restructuring ofAsean. At the top level of thealliance today, we have theannual Summit of Heads ofGovernment. This is now to bereshaped, becoming an AseanCouncil meeting at least twice ayear. Under that umbrella, therewould be three councils to dealwith the three communitiesmentioned. This should help topropel the creation of “a singlemarket with free movement ofgoods, ideas and skilled talentalong with efforts to harmoniseregional economic policies andstrengthen regional linkagesand connectivity”.

There is to be a greater rolefor the Asean secretary-general.The secretary-general, assistedby four deputies, will be thechief administrative officer ofAsean, with the power to bringimportant issues to theattention of the council and torepresent Asean, whenmandated to do so, at the United

(L-R): Herman Kraft, George Manzano (UA&PSchool of Economics), Loretta Rosales (Akbayan),and Wigberto Tanada (member, Working Group for

an ASEAN Human Rights Mechanism). Photo: ATENEO HUMAN RIGHTS CENTER (AHRC)

Filipino solidarity groups picket in front of the Singapore embassy in Makatito call for democracy in Burma and for the release of freedom icon DawAung San Suu Kyi. Photo: INITIATIVES FOR INTERNATIONAL DIALOGUE (IID)


Nations and other forums. Yetthe secretary-general of anyorganisation is often faced withthe challenge whether to be amere secretary or to becomemore of a general. The latter isunlikely for Asean.

Third, the charter is likely tostipulate various rights andobligations pertaining tomembership. The pressures foraccountability are referred toexplicitly in the report,including possible suspensionof rights and privileges where amember commits a seriousbreach. As for the sanction ofexpulsion from theorganisation, the report tactfullystates that there shall be norecourse to such action unlessotherwise decided by the AseanCouncil in exceptionalcircumstances. In a way, this is abolder vision for Asean,although the harder option willrarely be resorted to. Inevitably,a test case is the non-democraticnature of a key Aseangovernment which has kept thelegitimate leaders of the countryunder arrest and out of powerfor a long time. While recentlyAsean has become moreassertive against thatgovernment and has becomeless attached to the previouslysacrosanct principle of“noninterference in the internalaffairs of a state”, its position isstill less progressive than thattaken by various UN organs onthis issue, and it has yet toproduce tangible results.

Fourth, there is to be a morerealistic decision-makingprocess. To date, Asean hasworked on the basis ofconsensus. This has impededdecision-making on somefronts. The Eminent PersonsGroup report proposes thatwhile consensus should remainthe basis for decision making insensitive areas such as securityand foreign policy, in otherareas, it says a majority voteshould rule if consensus cannotbe achieved. There is also roomfor accepting formally a formulawhich is already being used inAsean, namely the “Asean minusX” or “2 plus X” formula whichenables initiatives to be taken

by some countries, even if notall 10 Asean countries are readyto do so.

Fifth, the report calls forpeaceful settlement of disputesand advises that disputesettlement mechanisms in thepolitical and economic fieldsshould be established.Intriguingly, it does notemphasise the reality thatactually such mechanisms existin Asean but they simply havenot been used where disputeshave arisen. Asean countrieshave shown themselves moreready to use quiet diplomaticchannels rather than formalAsean channels. For instance,the first Asean treaty in the1970s, the Treaty of Amity andCooperation, provided for thesetting up of a high council tosettle disputes, but it has neverbeen resorted to. There are alsotreaty provisions, whichevolved later, to establisheconomic panels to help settleeconomic disputes, but thesehave yet to be utilized in realterms. As a test of confidence forexisting Asean mechanisms,some Asean countries havepreferred to use theInternational Court of Justice inthe Hague to settle disputesbetween themselves rather thanutilise existing Aseanmechanisms. This has been thecase with resource disputesbetween three Asean countries;the three have opted to go tothe Hague.

In this regard, the EminentPersons Group has not been boldenough to suggest that Aseanshould have a regional court asexist in other parts of the worldsuch as in Africa, Europe and theAmericas. Such a court woulddiffer from the currentmechanisms available in Asean;it would be able to issue bindingdecisions and have enforcementpowers.

Sixth, one of the underlyingaims of having an Asean charterwould be to stipulate that thealliance has a legal personality.However, international lawsuggests that subjectivestipulations on this front are notnecessarily conclusive. The testof whether an entity has

international legal personalitydepends on how others dealwith the entity, it depends onobjective assessment and therecognition by other entities.For instance, are other countriesready to sign treaties with Aseanas Asean, or will they continueto sign treaties with the 10member states of Asean ratherthan Asean as an entity? Ifrecognised as an entity, it wouldindicate that Asean had a legalpersonality. Interestingly, thereport opens the door to puttingAsean’s legal personality onfirmer ground by suggestingother countries may wish tosend ambassadors accredited toAsean rather than merelyaccredited to individualcountries with the group.

Seventh, there is to be a morepeople-oriented Asean, with themotto “One Vision, OneIdentity, One Community”. Thereport calls for Asean to engagecivil society, think-tanks and theAsean Inter-ParliamentaryAssembly. It proposes the ideaof consultative or advisorycouncils for interacting withcivil society andparliamentarians from Aseanmember states. Yet it has notadvocated the need for an Aseanparliament or assembly withdirect representation from thepeople of each country througha democratic process. Thisomission is obviously due to thecurrent political physiognomyof Asean itself.

Eighth, the report notes thatthe idea of a regional humanrights protection mechanismshould be pursued further. It iscommon knowledge that Asiaand Asean do not yet have sucha mechanism to help promoteand protect human rights wherethe national setting is not yetdeveloped enough to do so. Thissupport from the EminentPersons Group is welcome and,in reality, a number of ideashave already been offered bycivil society.

Given that all Aseancountries are parties to theinternational treaties onwomen’s rights and child rights,an Asean Commission onWomen’s Rights and Child

Rights could be set up. But itshould provide “value added”service and not duplicate thework of internationalcommittees which already existto protect such rights. A keyangle is that the “value added”could be provided by an inter-governmental system whichoffers not only measures toprevent negative situations butalso to protect people from harmand to provide redress directlyto those affected by the negativesituations. Those drafting thecharter should consider thisoption very seriously. They maywish to be even bolder byinstituting a broadermechanism such as an AseanHuman Rights Commission tocover a whole array of issues.On a parallel front, it can benoted that the Cebu summit alsoadopted a declaration on therights of migrant workers. Thiswould also depend upon amonitoring mechanism at theregional level to encouragecompliance.

Finally, a really boldmeasure would be to put thefinished draft charter to the testby means of a referendum sothat the peoples of Asean can bemore involved in the process ofevolving a so-called constitutionfor the region. While this ismost improbable at this pointin time, it should be necessaryin the long term. Thequintessential need for people’sparticipation remains at theheart of the growth process ofany regional organisation. It isthe pivotal test of whetherAsean has succeeded or willsucceed in the future.

VITIT MUNTARBHORN is aprofessor in the faculty of law atChulalongkorn University. He is co-chair of the civil society workinggroup for an Asean Human RightsMechanism. He has served theUnited Nations in a variety ofcapacities, including as an expert,consultant and special rapporteur.

This article is republished withpermission from both the author andThe Bangkok Post. Originallypublished in The Bangkok PostJanuary 29, 2007.

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HR DiGEST

agreement, for example, are thefollowing: China has the soleauthority to determine thepayment schedule; it has the rightto impose immediate paymentseven before the project begins;and it places China’s laws as thegoverning laws for theagreement. In this agreement, thePhilippine governmentirrevocably and unconditionallywaives its immunity from anysuit or judgment arising from thecontract.

In fact, starting January 2005,the North Luzon Railways Corp.(NLRC) has been paying anaverage of $400,000 (P17.118million) per month in interestpayments for the Northrail, even

if the Chinese contractor has notyet started building the CaloocanCity-Malolos, Bulacan railway.

The deals with the Chinesegovernment, according to IBON,should be opposed “not onlybecause they worsen thecountry’s indebtedness, but alsobecause they perpetuate theflawed neoliberal framework ofeconomic development that hasaggravated the country’s per-manent crisis of maldevelop-ment and widespread poverty.”

SOURCES:“Other gov’t deals with China

also marred by bad loans andcorruption.” IBON Media Releasedated September 27, 2007.

Orejas, T. (Nov. 12, 2007). RPpaying China P17M monthly in loaninterest for NorthRail. PhilippineDaily Inquirer. http://n e w s i n f o . i n q u i r e r . n e t /b r e a k i n g n e w s / n a t i o n /view_article.php?article_id=100426

BAD DEALSCORRUPTION AND

“onerous loanagreements” tainted

not only the ZTE broadbanddeal but several other loans thatthe Arroyo administrationsigned with the Chinesegovernment, according to theindependent think-tank IBON.

IBON said that at least fiveother loans, mostly involvingmajor infrastructure projectsand worth more than US$2.8billion, are just as questionableas the US$330 million ZTEbroadband deal. These projectsinclude the controversialNorthrail Project.

Among the one-sidedprovisions of the Northrail loan

TRiViA:HRn THE RIGHT WORDS

THE CAMPAIGN to make poverty history – a central moralchallenge of our age – cannot remain a task for the few. It mustbecome a calling for the many.

KOFI ANNAN

Former Secretary-General, United Nations

n IN THIS QUARTER

International Day for theEradication of Poverty

ON OCTOBER 17, 1987, morethan 100,000 human rightsdefenders converged on thePlaza of Human Rights andLiberties at the place du Trocadéroin Paris where the UniversalDeclaration of Human Rightswas signed in 1948. The peoplecame in response to an appealby Father Joseph Wresinski and“to commemorate those whohave fallen victim to extremepoverty, violence and hunger.”The Trocadero gatheringproclaimed that poverty is aviolation of human rights andcalled for the protection of theserights. A commemorative stonein honour of the victims ofextreme poverty wasinaugurated.

This gathering became knownas the first International Day forthe Eradication of Poverty.

The UN General Assembly,through resolution 47/196adopted on December 22, 1992,declared October 17 as theInternational Day for theEradication of Poverty.

This year’s theme is ‘People Livingin Poverty as Agents of Change:20th Anniversary of theInternational Day for the Eradicationof Poverty.’

Sources:h t tp ://www.un.org/esa/s o c d e v / s o c i a l / i n t l d a y s /IntlDay/index.htmlht tp ://web.amnesty .org/pages/poverty-161007-feature-eng

Dayuhang mineroGinto ang luhoNagsadya kay ApoHanap ay bato

Dayuhang mineroBundok ay kinalboGubat ay na-trosoBinaha ang tribo

Dayuhang mineroHumukay ng batoNilason ng asidoNamatay ay tao

Salot..........................................By Pepito Frias

COMMEMORATIVE STONEIN HONOUR OF VICTIMSOF EXTREME POVERTY

TROCADERO HUMAN RIGHTS PLAZA, PARIS, FRANCE

............................................................................................................

OCTOBER 17, 1987

ON THIS DAY, DEFENDERS OF HUMAN AND CIVIL RIGHTSFROM EVERY CONTINENT GATHERED HERE. THEY PAID HOMAGE

TO THE VICTIMS OF HUNGER, IGNORANCE AND VIOLENCE.THEY AFFIRMED THEIR CONVICTION THAT HUMAN MISERY

IS NOT INEVITABLE. THEY PLEDGED THEIR SOLIDARITYWITH ALL PEOPLE WHO, THROUGHOUT THE WORLD,

STRIVE TO ERADICATE EXTREME POVERTY.

“WHEREVER HUMAN BEINGS ARE CONDEMNEDTO LIVE IN EXTREME POVERTY, HUMAN RIGHTS ARE VIOLATED.

TO COME TOGETHER TO ENSURE THATTHESE RIGHTS BE RESPECTED IS OUR SOLEMN DUTY.”

FATHER JOSEPH WRESINSKI


F A C T S A N D F I G U R E S

THE CORRUPTION Barometer 2006 is a public opinion survey of 59,661 people in62 low-, middle-, and high-income countries that seeks to understand howcorruption impacts on the lives of ordinary people and thus providing insights onthe form and extent of corruption from the perspective of citizens around the globe.The study was undertaken by Gallup International in behalf of the TransparencyInternational, a global coalition against corruption.

The following are some of the highlights of the research results:

GLOBAL CORRUPTION BAROMETER 2006

*NIS – Newly Independent StatesSource: Source: Transparency International, Global Corruption Report 2007, Cambridge University Press, 2007

FIGURE 2: The percentage of respondents that have paid a bribe to thepolice by regional grouping2

Source: TI Global Corruption Barometer 2006

Perc

enta

ge o

f res

pond

ents

with

cont

act t

hat h

ave

paid

a b

ribe

60%

50%

40%

30%

20%

10%

0Total

sampleAfrica Latin

AmericaNIS Asia-Pacific SE Europe Morth

AmericaEU+

FIGURE 1: Percentage of respondents who have paid a bribe to differentsectors (total sample)

18%

16%

14%

12%

10%

8%

6%

4%

2%

0Police Registry

and permitservices

Legalsystem/judiciary

Medicalservices

Educationsystem

Utilities Tax revenue


Perc

enta

ge o

f res

pond

ents

with

cont

act t

hat h

ave

paid

a b

ribe

TABLE 1: How would you assess your government’s actions in the fight against corruption?


EU+ NIS LatinAmerica

NorthAmerica

Asia-Pacific

AfricaSouthEast

Europe

Totalsample

Very effective 5% 4% 6% 3% 17% 7% 4% 2%Effective 17% 18% 21% 14% 27% 18% 15% 17Not effective 38% 42% 30% 40% 24% 29% 34% 50%Does not fight at all 16% 14% 19% 24% 20% 19% 18% 9%Encourages it 15% 14% 9% 15% 9% 23% 15% 19%Don’t know 8% 8% 14% 5% 3% 4% 15% 4%

1. Finland 9.6Iceland 9.6New Zealand 9.6

5. Singapore 9.444. Malaysia 563. Thailand 3.6111. Timor Leste 2.6

Vietnam 2.6Laos 2.6

121. Philippines 2.5130. Indonesia 2.4151. Cambodia 2.1160. Myanmar 1.9*163. Haiti 1.8* lowest rank

CORRUPTION PERCEPTIONS INDEX (CPI) 2006(Top three, lowest, and Southeast Asian Countries)

*‘2006 CPI score’ relates to perceptions of the degree of corruption as seenby business people and country analysts and ranges between 10 (highlyclean) and 0 (highly corrupt).

COUNTRY CPI SCORE

Source: Transparency International, Global Corruption Report 2007,Cambridge University Press, 2007


LABADA REPUBLIC

F A C T S A N D F I G U R E S

THE 2007 SWS BUSINESS SURVEYON CORRUPTIONFROM MARCH to May of 2007, the Social Weather Stations (SWS) conducted asurvey on corruption among 705 Filipino managers in key industrial areas in thePhilippines. Since 2000, SWS has been undertaking similar researches under theTransparent and Accountable Governance project to monitor the Philippinecorruption situation over time.

The following are some of the highlights of the said study:

Scale of Corruption

• Three (3) out of five (5) managers see a lot of corruption in the publicsector – no improvement in seven (7) years;

• One (1) out of two (2) say that most / almost all the firms in their line ofbusiness give bribes to win government contracts and one (1) out of five(5) say firms give bribes to win private contracts;

• Fifty percent (50%) of the managers, versus forty percent (40%) in 2005,see corruption as part of how government works.

Sincerity in Fighting Corruption

• Of the 29 government agencies rated in 2007, 12 are positive and 17 arenegative.

Source: Transparent AccountableGovernance: The 2007 SWS BusinessSurvey on Corruption, a presentationto the Cabinet, Malacañang, Manila,August 21, 2007


SINCE APRIL 2004, the Philippine Human Rights Information Center (PhilRights)has been accepting interns from local and international institutions anduniversities. This Internship Program is open to college students, researchers or

professionals who are interested in doing internship work in an NGO like PhilRights,especially those who want to expand their experience in human rights work. Interns areassigned to one of PhilRights’ four institutional programs: information, research, training,and monitoring/documentation.

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The Editor, Human Rights Forumc/o Philippine Human Rights Information Center (PhilRights)53-B Maliksi St., Brgy. Pinyahan, 1100 Quezon CityTel. nos. +(632) 433-1714 and +(632) 436-5686E-mail: [email protected]: www.philrights.org

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