National Democratic Front of the Philippines
Monitoring Committee

Press Statement
29 August 2007


Professor Sison's arrest, ransacking of NDF International Information Office and houses of Filipino Refugees spell death for the peace negotiations

By Fidel V. Agcaoili
Chairman

On behalf the NDFP-Monitoring Committee, we condemn in the strongest terms the arrest of Prof. Jose Maria Sison, Chief Political Consultant of the NDFP Negotiating Panel, and the raids and ransacking of the NDF International Information Office and the houses of Filipino refugees by the Dutch police on the basis of trumped-up charges by the Philippine government.

The actions of the Dutch authorities gravely violate the rights of Prof. Sison and other Filipino refugees and do not in any way contribute to the furtherance of the peace negotiations between the Government of the Republic of the Philippines (GRP) and the National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP).

With the arrest of Prof. Sison based on false charges, Mrs. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo has succeeded in extending her long fascist arms abroad courtesy of the Dutch authorities.

It should be Mrs. Arroyo and her minions in the Cabinet Oversight Committee on Internal Security who should instead be arrested for war crimes under the principle of command responsibility for the extrajudicial executions and enforced disappearances of more than 900 unarmed civilians in the implementation of Oplan Bantay Laya I and II.

Contrary to the claims of Mrs. Arroyo, the arrest of Prof. Sison and the raids conducted are bound to terminate the ongoing peace negotiations between the NDFP and the Arroyo government.

The NDFP Negotiating Panel will await instructions from the leadership of the revolutionary movement in the Philippines on the fate of the peace negotiations in light of the recent arrest of Prof. Sison.

The arrest of Prof. Sison will not stop the Filipino people from advancing the struggle for national liberation and democracy and the attainment of a just and lasting peace in the Philippines. They will continue to intensify their resistance against the illegitimate, unjust, corrupt and barbaric Arroyo regime.#


REFERENCE:
Ruth de Leon
Executive Director
NDFP International Information Office
Tel.: +31 30 2310431
Fax.: +31 84 7589930
Email: ndf@casema.nl

Statement in Txt format

"The photos of Julie Sison's bruised arm and the damaged door shows how the Dutch police came like their American counterparts. The police broke down doors with battering rams and stormed into the houses, just like their police detectives and FBI agents on American television shows."

Photo, right: Bruises on the arm of Juliet Sison as a result of her being held down by operatives while the police were ransacking their place

FREE JOSE MARIA SISON!

The International Committee Defend condemns in the strongest terms the unjust arrest this morning, August 28, of Filipino political exile Prof. Jose Maria Sison, by the Dutch Police, on trumped-up charges, and the simultaneous police raids in Utrecht on several houses of Filipinos, including the NDF International Information Office. The arrest of Professor Sison came after the Philippine Supreme Court dismissed several politically-motivated cases filed against him and several others. The case filed against him by the Dutch police are similarly politically-motivated and must be dismissed immediately.

Also, the European Court of the First Instance in Luxemburg on July 11, annulled the inclusion of Professor Sison in the European Council’s ‘terrorist’ listing because the Council of the European Union failed to give a valid reason for his inclusion.

Professor Sison or Joma, was arrested when he reported to the Utrecht police after he got an invitation from them supposedly about new information on the complaint he filed in 2001.

According to Sison’s lawyer who accompanied him to the police station,  Sison was asked to go to a room supposedly to be asked questions. And after he was alone in the room he was whisked away without the knowledge of his lawyer, to the National Penitentiary in Scheveningen in The Hague where he is now under detention.

International Committee Defend strongly denounces the ‘Gestapo-style’ manner in which the Dutch police arrested Professor Sison and conducted the raids. Defend said the police used a ruse to take Sison into custody. Also during the raids, the raiding team in some cases, did not show any search warrant and forced their entry into the houses by breaking the doors even if people were inside. In some of the houses that were raided, only minors were present.

Julie Sison, wife of Sison, said at around 9:30 am, the Dutch police in plainclothes did not even ring or knock, but instead broke down their front door. She was reportedly asked to sit in one corner of their house while the police carted away their computers, documents, CDs, and other files. The search lasted until early evening.

Simultaneous with Joma’s  arrest and the search on his house, the NDF International Information Office and several other houses of Filipinos in Utrecht, were raided. The Dutch police confiscated computers, laptops, papers, diskettes, CD Roms, and DVDs.

The arrest of Professor Sison and the searches in several Filipino houses are clearly politically-motivated. EU envoy Javier Solana has said that the terrorist tag on the CPP, NPA and Professor Sison would be dropped if they capitulate.

The Philippines, Dutch and US are using judicial proceedings to put political pressure on the NDFP to surrender to the Manila government.

Committee Defend will hold the Dutch government accountable for any harm that may happen to Professor Sison, including rendition to any country outside the Netherlands, while under their custody.

Committee Defend announces that there will be protest mobilizations in the Philippines, Canada, US, Australia, Hong Kong,  Indonesia and several countries in Europe.

IMMEDIATELY RELEASE PROF. JOSE MARIA SISON!

JUNK THE TRUMPED-UP CHARGES!

STOP THE POLITICAL PERSECUTION OF FILIPINO PROGRESSIVES IN EUROPE!

International Committee DEFEND

Utrecht, The Netherlands

For reference:

Atty. Jan Fermon

Lead Counsel in the European Court of First Instance case

+32-475441896

Atty. Michel Pestman

Counsel

+31-20-3446200

Statement in Word format

Unnecessary display of force

the by Dutch police

This is not an American crime series on television, but the way the Dutch police ransacked the homes of the Filipino progressives in the Netherlands and arrested Jose Maria Sison was simply an arrogant and unnecessary display of force.

The photos of Julie Sison's bruised arm and the damaged door shows how the Dutch police came like their American counterparts. The police broke down doors with battering rams and stormed into the houses, just like their police detectives and FBI agents on American television shows.

"O.A. (overacting) sila. They could have knocked or rang the doorbell and we would have let them in," said a Filipino youngster. Two families had children and teen-aged members of the household. They were terribly shaken after the plain-clothed agents stormed their homes and confiscated personal belongings including computers. Not amusingly, the police even came ready with a team of repairmen to fix the doors. There were no psychologists, though, to counsel the traumatized youngsters and victims of the brutal display of force.


 

Eyewitness accounts show that around a hundred agents in plainclothes and more than a dozen unmarked police vehicles were involved in the simultaneous attacks on seven different locations. Computers, documents and other personal belongings were confiscated by the police. A shaken teener complained that the rude police agents even took his Playstation. More houses are expected to be raided after an agent has heard saying that they planed to search nine locations. Only six private homes and the NDFP houses have been ransacked by the police.
 

"Why did they arrest Tito Joma? Why did they hurt Tita Julie?" asked a young Filipino neighbor of Joma and Julie Sison. "I'm sure Gloria (Arroyo) and Bush are behind this!" she added.

The Sison couple have been like family to many of the young children of Filipino political activists who have refugee status in the Netherlands.

Filipino organizations and migrant communities all over the world expressed indignation at the recent politically-motivated crackdown on the social activists and leaders of the Philippine movement in the Netherlands. Concerned organizations and individuals all over the world condemned attacks on Filipino progressives in Europe. They called for protest actions and demanded the immediate and unconditional release of Joma Sison.
 

■   BAYAN Statement on the arrest of NDF Chief Political Consultant Jose Ma. Sison

■   BAYAN - USA statement: Fil-Am Alliance Condemns Dubious Arrest of NDF Political Consultant

■   KMU statement: Protesta sa Dutch Embassy ikinasa; Paghuli kay Joma Sison, utos ng gobyernong U.S. at Arroyo -- KMU

■   Free Comrade Jose Ma. Sison!.

■   Release Sison now! Migrante slams political persecution of Prof. Jose Maria Sison, other progressive Filipino migrants

■   Militants protest at Dutch Embassy; Arrest of Prop. Joma Sison, handiwork of U.S. and Arroyo gov'ts -- KMU

■   Joma arrest will spark another 'red moon rising,' youth group warns

■   GABRIELA Network calls for boycott of Dutch products following Sison arrest;Labels charges against Sison et al "ludicrous"

■   Statement of the Alliance of Filipino Migrants Association in Korea on the arrest of Prof. Jose Maria Sison by the Dutch police

■   Canadians and Overseas Filipinos Condemn Arrest of Professor Jose Maria Sison by Dutch Police

■   We demand the immediate and unconditional release of Jose Maria Sison - Center for Philippine Concerns

■   Jose Maria Sison Arrested - Indymedia Ireland

■   Fight Back! - Aug 2007 - Free Jose Maria Sison!

■   Chronology of the persecution of Prof. Jose Maria Sison

■   SLIDESHOW - Comcast.net

■   Philippines on alert after communist leader arrested - Yahoo! News

■   Dutch Police Arrests Philippine Communist Leader

■   ABS-CBN Interactive

      Self-exiled founder of the Communist Party of the Philippines Jose Maria Sison was arrested in the Netherlands, ABS-CBN News reported Tuesday. ...

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