Archive for March 8th, 2007
Defense department rejects US report on killings
MANILA, Philippines — The Department of National Defense (DND) rejected sections of a United States State Department human rights report that found security forces were behind a number of the extrajudicial killings in the country.
The report also said the failure to solve the killings had contributed to the “culture of impunity” gripping the country.
Undersecretary and department spokesman Ernesto Carolina said the US State Department failed to understand that the supposed murders took place while the military was battling communist rebels.
The military leadership insists most of the killings are the result of an internal purge within the communist rebel movement.
The human rights group Karapatan estimates that more than 830 persons, mostly activists, have fallen victim to extrajudicial killings since 2001.
“We expect this kind of concern from the international community, especially from the developed countries. They don’t know the revolutionary situation,” Carolina said.
“They are expecting a more aggressive effort, like what we are doing, the willingness to investigate,” he added.
Earlier, United Nations special rapporteur on extrajudicial killings Philip Alston and the Palace formed Melo Commission also linked rogue soldiers to the killings. Alston said the military was in a “state of denial” over the bloodshed.
On Wednesday, Carolina said the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) human rights office has recognized 94 killings in which security forces may have been involved.
Carolina likened the killings to the Plaza Miranda bombing in the early 1970s, which communist rebels allegedly staged, but which the rebels blamed on the government as part of their efforts to bring it down.
“[The killings are] not on the scale that is being painted by the Left. It is not with impunity. It is not a [state] policy,” he said.
“They [Left] capitalize on everything to create a revolutionary situation and make the government look bad,” he said.
View article as posted on INQUIRER.net
Military moves to ‘soften image’ of Metro troops
‘Office uniform and concealed pistols’
MANILA, Philippines — From combat fatigues and assault rifles, the military has moved to soften the image of troops deployed to depressed Metro Manila communities by making them wear office uniform and carry concealed pistols.
“We don’t want them to be so mean-looking,” said National Capital Region Command (NCRCom) chief Major General Ben Mohammad Dolorfino. “Some of them still have short firearms, but these will be concealed, not on display.”
Military spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Bartolome Bacarro said the order to shift from battle dress attire (BDA) to general office attire (GOA) took effect Thursday, even before Malacañang ordered it.
A BDA is camouflage fatigues and combat boots while a GOA is a shirt, pants, black leather shoes, and a cap.
“We did it [order to change the uniform] on our own…This is one of our modifications so that the people will not be afraid of soldiers patrolling the streets,” Dolorfino said.
On Wednesday, Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita said troops in the capital should “dress down” from their combat gear or battle dress attire or (BDA) to general office attire (GOA).
But Defense undersecretary Ernesto Carolina said it would be hard for soldiers to shift to GOA since most of them have only one office uniform but can have up to four sets of battle dress.
“They have to be in uniform so that when they do their work, they are identifiable,” Carolina said, adding, “When they are in uniform, they are more responsible.”
Carolina said not all of the troops were armed but added that some needed to be armed with assault rifles because “there has to be someone in charge of security.”
Asked if the order was prompted by criticism of the deployment of soldiers in the metropolis, Dolorfino said: “Yes, We have been monitoring the reactions. This [order] is based on our observations.”
Since November, 26 10-man NCRCom teams, supposedly undertaking humanitarian missions while training for peacekeeping assignments abroad, have been dispatched to slums in Manila, Quezon City, and Caloocan City.
Bacarro said the medical and dental missions would start in “two to three days.”
Carolina stood pat on the troop deployment, dismissing criticism of the move as dog “barks.”
“If you have to listen to all the barks of the dog, you will never reach your destination,” Carolina said, quoting from former defense chief Orlando Mercado.
“We see no reason [for a pullout]. The training is effective,” Carolina told reporters.
Left-wing party list groups have accused the NCRCom troops of campaigning against them and harassing their supporters ahead of the May mid-term elections.
Also on Thursday, Dolorfino hosted a dialogue with residents at a Muslim community in barangay (village) 188, Bagong Silang district in Caloocan City on Thursday.
NCRCom spokesman Lieutenant Garysande Mamaludin said the dialogue was tied with the humanitarian component of the metropolitan troop deployment.
“This is our way of knowing the concerns of the communities,” Mamaludin said.
View article as posted on INQUIRER.net
