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52% of Filipinos distrust Arroyo–survey |
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| BY FLEUR L. HARRIS Washington, DC - Dismayed at the seeming cold response of the Philippine government on the spate of extra-judicial killings in the country in recent years, human rights advocates have taken their crusade to Capitol Hill where lies the chance to hurt the Arroyo government the most. A delegation of Philippine church leaders and human rights activists called on the Senate Wednesday, March 14, to attach conditions to the millions of dollars in military aid the US doles out to the Philippines each year as pressure tactic to end the killings. Left-wing human rights group Karapatan testified before the Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on East Asian and Pacific Affairs that 833 leftist activists and community workers have been killed since President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo assumed office in 2001. The group, citing circumstantial evidence, has linked the executions to the Philippine military. Karapatan secretary general Marie Hilao-Enriquez said US military assistance as well as trade investments in the Philippines should be put under strict review to ensure foreign funding "does not exacerbate the killings" and other human rights abuses. The Philippine government reportedly stands to receive $17.6 million in military aid this year, making the country the top recipient of US military funding in Asia, not counting allocations for training programs and military hardware hand-me-downs. "Strong and clear" Human rights group Amnesty International (AI) is urging the US government to send a "strong and clear message" to the Arroyo administration that continued foot-dragging on the issue could affect the latter's ties to Washington. The group also asked that appropriate US congressional committees be informed of the monetary aid being extended to the Philippine government to fight communist insurgency. It further asked that specific benchmarks be set for the Philippines to put an end to the violence that appears to target suspected sympathizers of the communist movement. In his testimony before the Senate committee, T. Kumar, AI advocacy director for Asia and the Pacific, accused the Philippine government of using its problems on terrorism and communism as an excuse to eliminate political enemies. "The Armed Forces of the Philippines remains in a state of almost total denial of its need to respond effectively and authentically to the significant number of killings which have been convincingly attributed to them," Kumar said. Church protests Bishop Eliezer Pascua, general secretary of the United Church of Christ in the Philippines who led the ecumenical delegation to Washington, reinforced testimonies on the climate of violence in the country. He stressed that even clergymen and church workers have not been spared in the killings. In an interview with Manila Bulletin USA, Pascua said reviewing the amount of money the US is pouring into efforts to strengthen the Philippine military should banner efforts to pressure the Arroyo government into bringing the perpetrators of the crime to justice. Not enough California Sen. Barbara Boxer (D), who chairs the committee conducting the inquiry, said the Philippine government has not taken sufficient action to address the problem in spite of the staggering number of killings. "Are we going to be attacked for training a military that is perpetrating the abuses?" she asked the panel of witnesses. Boxer said the US should be very cautious that "our money, in the name of the American people, could be used to kill innocent people." Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Eric G. John, the top US diplomat in Southeast Asia, said that while President Arroyo has "marched out on the right way" to resolve the killings, her administration will have to show more effort to curb the violence. "She's off to a good start but until the numbers [of extra-judicial killings] go down though I don't think we can say it's enough," John said. John said the Senate inquiry was a good way to draw international attention to the rash of killings in the Philippines. US influence Representatives from the Philippine government were conspicuously absent from the hearing although Ambassador Willy Gaa released an official statement denying allegations that US military aid was being used to commit human rights violations. "We wish to take strong exception to related allegations being raised by some quarters that US assistance, particularly military logistical equipment, are being misused by Philippine security forces as instruments for human rights violations and in conducting these political killings," Gaa said. "We are committed in strengthening our institutions and in building our capacity to eradicate a culture of violence which threatens our democratic way of life," Gaa said. Gaa said 94 cases of extra-judicial killings allegedly linked to members of Philippine security forces are now being investigated by the newly-created Armed Forces of the Philippines Human Rights Office. Gaa also said President Arroyo has designated 99 regional trial courts as special tribunals to ensure the speedy resolution of cases that are political or ideological in nature. The Arroyo administration had dispatched a group of police and military officials to the Senate hearing, a move which quickly drew the ire of Sen. Boxer. (See related article on sidebar) "I don't understand why you have to send military and police to a hearing that a couple of senators are holding to look at allegations of human rights abuses," Boxer said. G. Eugene Martin, executive director of the Philippine Facilitation Project of the US Institute of Peace, also underscored the role of the US government in pushing the Arroyo administration into tougher action. "The US and other nations are not without influence to help end the violence of extra-judicial killings. The Philippines is sensitive to and dependent on the goodwill and support of its neighbors and international donors," Martin said. Manila officials, however, remained optimistic that US military aid to the Philippines will not be tied to the political killings while welcoming the Senate probe into alleged rampant human rights violations occurring in the country. |
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