INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY MUST BE WELL-INFORMED ABOUT THE DIRE CONSEQUENCES OF THE LABEL “CHILD SOLDIERS” TO FILIPINO CHILDREN- SALINLAHI 


NEWS RELEASE

21 April 2007

 

REFERENCE:  ALPHONSE RIVERA, Spokesperson (09213581239)

 

 

INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY MUST BE WELL-INFORMED ABOUT THE DIRE CONSEQUENCES OF THE LABEL “CHILD SOLDIERS” TO FILIPINO CHILDREN           

                                                                                                - SALINLAHI

 

The SALINLAHI Alliance for Children’s Concerns has started its effort in international campaign to seek justice for Grecil, the 9 year old girl from New Bataan, Compostela Valley who was killed and later branded as a child soldier by the Armed Forces of the Philippines .  “The international community has been a major factor in exposing the rampant human rights violations in the Philippines .  In the same way, we would like to bring to light to the whole world the equally rampant and equally abhorrent human rights violations against children,” declared Alphonse Rivera, Officer-in-Charge and Spokesperson of SALINLAHI.

 

SALINLAHI has been involved in the campaign for the protection and promotion of children’s rights and welfare since 1986.  Together with the Children’s Rehabilitation Center (CRC), a SALINLAHI member organization that focuses on providing psycho-social help to children victims of human rights violations, it has focused on the campaign against the war of terror waged by the government against families and communities in the country sides.  “We are very saddened and outraged that Grecil will again be counted as a mere “collateral damage” just like the other children killed during President Arroyo’s Presidency,” Rivera added.

 

The campaign “Justice for Grecil, Justice for All Children Victims of the US-Arroyo’s War of Terror” aims to highlight in particular the plight of children who are irresponsibly branded as “child soldiers”, thereby making them vulnerable targets of military violence. 

 

As an initial effort, SALINLAHI joined the Japanese office of Human Rights Now in a press conference after the group took interest to investigate the case of Grecil.  “We welcome all efforts to expose the truth behind Grecil’s death.  Only through this will we know how our very own government ravages its children in the guise of restoring peace and order,” Rivera concluded.  ###