

Jonathan Sta. Rosa, brother of murdered United Methodist Pastor Isaias Sta. Rosa	Mylene Guerrero, wife of abducted/tortured and now detained UCCP Pastor Berlin Guerrero		Linda Cadapan, mother of abducted and still missing UP student Sherlyn.
JOINT PRESS STATEMENT KARAPATAN and HUSTISYA 20 October 2007 Relatives of Victims of Human rights Violations and Rights groups call for investigation of mall bombing and prosecution of perpetrators as they continue to seek justice for other victims of human rights violations Karapatan and Hustisya commiserate with the bereaved families of our eight compatriots killed and 89 injured in yesterday's tragic bombing of the Glorietta 2 mall yesterday. As we gather today in Plaza Salamanca, Manila, to pay tribute to and demand justice for our loved ones, friends and compatriots who were victims of state violence, we likewise join the nation in seeking justice for the victims of the Glorietta 2 bombing. We join the call for a thorough investigation, arrest, trial and punishment of those responsible for the blast. We likewise warn against any whitewash and sloppy investigation, which have been our sad experience with Mrs. Arroyo's police and military. The police-led Task Force Usig, for example is, until now, trying to deceive the public by saying many of the cases of extrajudicial killings have been solved with the identification of fall guys although no one has been placed behind bars. Karapatan and Hustisya call on our countrymen and women to be vigilant against any diversionary tactics of the embattled Macapagal-Arroyo regime that has resorted to a dirty war to ensure its survival. Today, we also express our deep concern about the alleged pay-offs in Malacanang using resources that could have been used for important social services. It is also repulsive that the Arroyo government can easily give away cash gifts to politicians while begging for foreign aid to allegedly solve the extrajudicial killings and enforced disappearances. Let us together continue to fight for justice and demand state accountability for the killings, disappearances and other human rights violations. Reference: Ruth Cervantes, Karapatan Public Info fficer (09189790580) Evangeline Hernandez, Hustisya Head Convener (09158562151) Telefax 4342837; 4354146 Email: karapatan.pid@gmail.com		a
		Former Vice President Tito Guingona



		A member of the Hongkong Mission for Peace and Human Rights in the Philippines



Evangeline Hernandez, HUSTISYA chair, and mother of murdered activist Beng	JL Burgos, brother of abducted and still missing Jonas.		A daughter of the murdered Bayan Muna members, the Abarillo couple

IFI Fr. Dione Cabillas	Rey Asis of the Hongkong human rights mission		Jigs Clamor of Karapatan

		Press Release – October 17, 2007 Reference: Donato Continente, Spokesperson and Coordinator (Mobile # 09178807189) Marcos victims, rights groups urge Congress to pass Compensation bill soon At the first meeting of the Technical Working Group (TWG) on the compensation bill for martial law victims at the House of Representatives on 17 October 2007, SELDA members urged the 14^th Congress to immediately pass the bill and uphold the group’s viable proposals for the law to realize its objectives. “We call on Congress to immediately pass an act for the compensation of martial law victims and to uphold the victims’ right to seek justice,” said SELDA member Romy Luneta. Luneta said “rendering justice to victims includes restitution, compensation, rehabilitation, satisfaction and guarantees of non-repetition – this is a basic principle of the rule of law and one of the main pillars of democracy.” SELDA said that the 14^th Congress would make its mark in history if it will enact a law that would acknowledge the State’s moral and legal obligation to render justice to the victims of the worst forms of human rights violations during martial law. The group said it supports House Bill 1114 but said it is open to a consolidated bill as long as it will not compromise the spirit and intent of the law. SELDA asserted that the law should reflect an official apology from the State to all victims and give first priority to the 9,539 class suit plaintiffs and the 24 direct action plaintiffs who have won the case against Marcos in the US Federal Court and who have already completed the process of validation. Many of the victims of human rights violations during martial law are impoverished and worse, many are sick and dying. Fifteen years after a famous judicial decision rendered in their favor, ironically in another country through an international jurisprudence called the Alien Tort Act, no time should be wasted in rendering justice and reparation for victims of crimes against humanity.### Samahan ng mga Ex-Detainees Laban sa Detensyon at para sa Amnestiya (Society of Ex-Detainees for Liberation against Detention and for Amnesty) 2^nd Floor, Erythrina Bldg., No. 1 Maaralin cor. Matatag Streets, Brgy. Central, Diliman, Quezon City Telefax 4354146 Email selda_phil@yahoo.com.ph







PRESS STATEMENT 16 October 2007 NDFP NEGOTIATING PANEL EXPRESES APPRECIATION FOR ALSTON REPORT TO THE U.N. LUIS G. JALANDONI Chairperson, NDFP Negotiating Panel The National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP) Negotiating Panel deeply appreciates the Report of UN Special Rapporteur Philip Alston to the UN General Assembly on extrajudicial killings in the Phiippines. Prof. Alston hits the nail on the head when he pinpoints the Arroyo government’s counter-insurgency plan, Oplan Bantay Laya, as the major reason for the drastic increase in the extrajudicial killings of leftist activists in the last six years. His exposé of the regime’s 110-page “order of battle”, signed by top military and police officials, brings to light the top policy decisions of the Arroyo regime in carrying out deathsquad assassinations on a nation-wide scale. Alston reiterates his firm view that the regime’s military is in a state of denial regarding the numerous extrajudicial killings convincingly attributed to them. In his powerful report, Prof. Alston describes the deadly consequences of the Arroyo government’s counter-insurgency policies. “Many in the Government have concluded that numerous civil society organizations are ‘fronts’ for the Communist Party of the Philippines and its armed group, the New People’s Army. One response has been counter-insurgency operations that result in the extrajudicial execution of leftist activists. In some areas, the leaders of leftist organizations are systematically hunted down by interrogating and torturing those who may know their whereabouts, and they are often killed following a campaign of individual vilification designed to instill fear into the community.” The NDFP Negotiating Panel likewise appreciates Prof. Alston’s firm rejection of the claims of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) that the New People’s Army (NPA) is responsible for most of the killings through so-called internal purges. Prof. Alston states, “The military’s insistence that the ‘purge theory’ is correct can only be viewed as a cynical attempt to displace responsibility.” The NDFP Negotiating Panel again vigorously condemns the Arroyo regime for the extrajudicial killings and enforced disappearances of more than a thousand unarmed activists and reiterates that the regime’s Oplan Bantay Laya plan and gross human rights violations are major impediments to the resumption of the peace negotiations between the Government of the Republic of the Philippines (GRP) and the NDFP. The NDFP Negotiating Panel takes this occasion to reiterate the firm commitment of the revolutionary movement to adhere to the Geneva Conventions and Protocols, to the Rules of the NPA and other principles and policies of its judicial and legal system, and to the GRPNDFP Comprehensive Agreement on Respect for Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law (CARHRIHL). We hope that the Alston Report to the United Nations will give added impetus to the campaign to stop the extrajudicial killings and other gross human rights violations committed by the Arroyo regime and open up possibilities for the resumption of peace talks directed at addressing the roots of the armed conflict through social, economic and political reforms beneficial to the people. ### REFERENCE: Ruth de Leon Executive Director NDFP International Information Office Tel.+31-30-2310431 Fax +31-84-7589930 Email: ndf@casema.nl













BONUS TRACKS


This old man rests his tired body at Plaza Salamanca while the human rights groups, KARAPATAN and HUSTISYA, prepare for their 17th gathering, commemorating the 1st death anniversary of IFI Bishop Ramento, 69 years old when murdered by suspected military operatives.		"The law applies to all, otherwise none at all" is a slogan popularized by Mayor Lim when he became Manila mayor the first time. There is something not quite right about the construction but everybody understands what the mayor means.

Bulatlat: Reign of Terror in Northern Negros, Farmer-Activist Tortured, Slain The family and kin of farmer Alano Clerigo, 34, demand justice for his killing. They blamed his military captors for his abduction-torture-murder.		Bulatlat:Military in Samar Abducted, Tortured Three Organizers, One Luckily Escaped Bulatlat: The Writ of Amparo and AO 197

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▲ A year after his father was murdered, Aldos Ramento reports that justice is as elusive as ever for his father, IFI Bishop Ramento, and other victims of human rights violations. Human rights and church workers offer white roses and candles to honor the 888 victims of extrajudicial killings and the more than 180 victims of enforced disappearances. This 17th gathering of relatives and friends of victims of human rights violation is a joint activityof the Iglesia Filipina Independiente, Ecumenical Bishops Forum, Ecumenical Voice on Peace and Human Rights in the Philippines, United Church of Christ in the Philippines, Kapatirang Simbahan para sa Bayan and Promotion of Church People's Response.