A landmark anti-terror law went into force in the Philippines yesterday, adding legal muscle to a US-backed war against al-Qaeda-linked militants but ushering in what activists claim is an era of fear.
The Human Security Act will turn the country -- regarded as a breeding ground for Islamic radicals -- into hostile ground for militants and shield the public and the economy from terror attacks, officials said.
"The general population is safely guarded by this law," said Defense Undersecretary Ric Blancaflor, a chief proponent of the law.
"Only terrorists have reasons to be threatened," he said.
However, a prominent left-wing group, Bayan, said the law endangers civil liberties that Filipinos won in 1986, when they ousted dictator Ferdinand Marcos in a nonviolent "people power" revolt.
"This is a new dark age for human rights and civil liberties," Bayan said in a statement.
About 300 left-wing activists rallied near President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo's palace yesterday, carrying posters showing her image with the words, "the real face of terror." Anti-riot squads stood nearby but made no attempt to break up the protest.
Bayan said it would question the law's constitutionality before the Supreme Court within days, arguing its definition of terrorism was too broad and could cover legitimate dissent.
The law allows detention of suspected terrorists without charge for three days and includes "rebellion or insurrection" among crimes considered terrorist.
Showing posts with label human rights. Show all posts
Showing posts with label human rights. Show all posts
Monday, July 16, 2007
Friday, July 13, 2007
New anti-terror law raises hackles in Philippines
The Philippine government, already under fire for a poor human rights record, is coming in for more criticism as it implements a new anti-terror law many fear could be used against political opponents.
Hundreds of people held a protest on Friday against the Human Security Act that allows detention of suspects without charge for up to three days and provides for up to 40 years in jail for anyone convicted of terrorism.
The law comes into force on Sunday.
"I pray that the Lord would enlighten the people concerned and Jonas would be found and that the Human Security Act would not be implemented," said Edita Burgos, whose activist son has been missing for over two months.
Jonas Burgos, a member of a left-wing farmers' group in the northern Philippines, is widely believed to have been picked up by a military "black squad" on April 28, and has not been heard of since.
Black squads is the term used for armed men in civilian clothes or masked men on motorcycles who have been seen picking up left-wing activists or firing at them.
The military has denied it has anything to do with the missing 37-year-old Burgos.
"I believe my son is still alive and I pray that I recover him alive," his mother told Reuters.
"The pain is really unbearable. If it were not for our faith, then I guess we would really break down. Thank God for our faith and thank God for you people out there."
A local human rights group has said about 200 students, trade union and peasant leaders have disappeared since President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo came to power in 2001. More than 800 left-wing activists have been killed during the same period.
A U.N. special rapporteur on extrajudicial killings said in February the military was responsible for many of the deaths.
The military has denied the allegations and has blamed Maoist rebels for most of the killings, calling it an internal war.
NOTHING TO FEAR
Arroyo signed the anti-terror legislation into law in March, but postponed its implementation until two months after congressional elections on May 14 to assure the president's political opponents it would not be used against them.
While the legislation was languishing in Congress for 11 years, the Philippines was criticized by the United States and other Western governments as the weak link in the global fight against terrorism.
The country is fighting Islamic militants in the south and communist rebels across the country.
Since 2000, more than 350 Filipinos have died in about 120 bombings blamed on Muslim militants, mostly in the south. The communist rebels do not target civilians but have been known to carry out land mine attacks against security forces.
Besides detention without charges and harsh jail sentences, the law allows security forces to investigate bank accounts of suspected terrorists or organizations used as financial conduits.
Electronic surveillance is also allowed but only after court approval.
"There's nothing to fear if you are not planning anything illegal," said Ricardo Blancaflor, defense undersecretary and the spokesman for the government's anti-terror task force.
He said there were enough safeguards to prevent security forces from abusing the law, adding some law enforcement agencies were complaining it was too restrictive and could work against them.
One safeguard allows anyone wrongfully detained to receive 500,000 pesos ($10,800) compensation for each day in custody.
Nevertheless, the law is coming in for severe criticism.
About 500 left-wing activists marched in Manila on Friday and held a protest rally, demanding lawmakers repeal the act and stop its implementation.
"It's a bill that will trample on the rights of the people," said left-wing leader Carol Araullo. "It will be used by the government against its enemies, its political enemies. It is tantamount to undeclared martial law."
Senator Mar Roxas, a former ally of Arroyo, said: "The government already suffers from highly negative public perceptions in regard to its human rights record.
"To push the limits further would only breed more fear and anger among the people. Better to err on the side of human rights than to breed tyranny."
Hundreds of people held a protest on Friday against the Human Security Act that allows detention of suspects without charge for up to three days and provides for up to 40 years in jail for anyone convicted of terrorism.
The law comes into force on Sunday.
"I pray that the Lord would enlighten the people concerned and Jonas would be found and that the Human Security Act would not be implemented," said Edita Burgos, whose activist son has been missing for over two months.
Jonas Burgos, a member of a left-wing farmers' group in the northern Philippines, is widely believed to have been picked up by a military "black squad" on April 28, and has not been heard of since.
Black squads is the term used for armed men in civilian clothes or masked men on motorcycles who have been seen picking up left-wing activists or firing at them.
The military has denied it has anything to do with the missing 37-year-old Burgos.
"I believe my son is still alive and I pray that I recover him alive," his mother told Reuters.
"The pain is really unbearable. If it were not for our faith, then I guess we would really break down. Thank God for our faith and thank God for you people out there."
A local human rights group has said about 200 students, trade union and peasant leaders have disappeared since President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo came to power in 2001. More than 800 left-wing activists have been killed during the same period.
A U.N. special rapporteur on extrajudicial killings said in February the military was responsible for many of the deaths.
The military has denied the allegations and has blamed Maoist rebels for most of the killings, calling it an internal war.
NOTHING TO FEAR
Arroyo signed the anti-terror legislation into law in March, but postponed its implementation until two months after congressional elections on May 14 to assure the president's political opponents it would not be used against them.
While the legislation was languishing in Congress for 11 years, the Philippines was criticized by the United States and other Western governments as the weak link in the global fight against terrorism.
The country is fighting Islamic militants in the south and communist rebels across the country.
Since 2000, more than 350 Filipinos have died in about 120 bombings blamed on Muslim militants, mostly in the south. The communist rebels do not target civilians but have been known to carry out land mine attacks against security forces.
Besides detention without charges and harsh jail sentences, the law allows security forces to investigate bank accounts of suspected terrorists or organizations used as financial conduits.
Electronic surveillance is also allowed but only after court approval.
"There's nothing to fear if you are not planning anything illegal," said Ricardo Blancaflor, defense undersecretary and the spokesman for the government's anti-terror task force.
He said there were enough safeguards to prevent security forces from abusing the law, adding some law enforcement agencies were complaining it was too restrictive and could work against them.
One safeguard allows anyone wrongfully detained to receive 500,000 pesos ($10,800) compensation for each day in custody.
Nevertheless, the law is coming in for severe criticism.
About 500 left-wing activists marched in Manila on Friday and held a protest rally, demanding lawmakers repeal the act and stop its implementation.
"It's a bill that will trample on the rights of the people," said left-wing leader Carol Araullo. "It will be used by the government against its enemies, its political enemies. It is tantamount to undeclared martial law."
Senator Mar Roxas, a former ally of Arroyo, said: "The government already suffers from highly negative public perceptions in regard to its human rights record.
"To push the limits further would only breed more fear and anger among the people. Better to err on the side of human rights than to breed tyranny."
Thursday, July 12, 2007
Arroyo: Anti-terror law is 'defending way of life'
Delivering her strongest pitch yet for the controversial anti-terror law officially named the Human Security Act (HSA), President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo said here that the new measure is not just about crushing terrorists in the country but "about defending our way of life."
Arroyo, speaking at the closing of the Mindanao Peace and Security Summit here, said the HSA was vital in preventing terrorist attacks on vital installations, singling out Mindanao's power infrastructure.
"I am hereby ordering the increased security of vital power and transportation facilities in Mindanao," she said. "Let us begin the implementation of the Human Security Act by using it as a tool to prevent multi-billion-peso hydroelectric dams and power grids from being whacked by terrorists."
She said knocking out these facilities caused more than just inconvenience.
"The deeper reality is when there is no power, there is no work, and therefore, the Human Security Act is about defending our way of life," she said.
At the same time, Arroyo offered assurances that civil and human rights will be guaranteed and that violators of these rights will be dealt with by law.
Arroyo said all those, including government agencies, tasked with implementing the law must ensure that the rights of citizens are respected.
"Hand in hand with the need for economic prosperity is the need to strengthen our institutions of government to ensure that civil rights and social justice are available to all Filipinos, not just a privileged few," she said.
Various groups, including the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines, have expressed concern that the law might be used to quell dissent but Arroyo has said there is no stopping the HSA from taking effect on July 15.
In a declaration, participants of the summit expressed support for the HSA and pledged to help in the information drive on the law.
Arroyo also stressed that the military "must continue on its path to reform."
"They must become even more professional every day at the same time they fight to eliminate the armed terrorist threats to the nation from religious extremists or communist terrorists," she said.
Arroyo condemned anew political killings, including those of members of media.
"The political terrorists who live outside the boundaries of human justice and who have marked the stability of our nation and the rule of law for extinction live by no moral code," Arroyo said. "We must band together as a people and as public servants to stop this violence."
While reiterating her belief that 99 percent of the military and the police are good, she reminded them that "fidelity to the Constitution is a sacred duty."
"These public servants have a moral obligation to uphold the Constitution and to protect the innocent. For this reason, any violent crime that a member of the law enforcement or military community may commit against innocent people is even more wrong and must be stopped. No one is above the law," she said.
"We are entering a new era of civil and human rights. The front line of this effort is built on lifting up the poor and liberating them from poverty," she said.
At the same time, she hinted of what could be in store for communist rebels, saying communities will also be protected from harassment, kidnapping, and plunder "that are so often part of the communist terrorist[s] who flog a failed ideology."
"Our government will protect the political rights of any person who wishes to participate in our democracy, however we might disagree on philosophy and approach," she said.
"We cannot stand idly by, however, and let the purveyors of violence cloak their agenda behind the innocent men and women they hold hostage to their failed ideology. We will wrestle with these failed terrorists to the ground and free the nation to live in peace and harmony," Arroyo said.
She also said "sweeping legislation" will be proposed to Congress to help end the killings, which have earned the administration increasing criticism from the international community, and remove the stain of political violence from the nation.
This legislation, she said, will guarantee "swift justice" through more funding for special courts to prosecute rights violators.
The rights of victims will also be strengthened through more money for law enforcement and tougher penalties will be imposed for anyone committing a crime with a firearm.
Arroyo directed adviser for the peace process Jesus Dureza to make sure the provisions in the declaration of the summit are accomplished. She also instructed Budget Secretary Rolando Andaya Jr. to find a way to meet the 30 percent proposed increase budget for Mindanao.
Arroyo, speaking at the closing of the Mindanao Peace and Security Summit here, said the HSA was vital in preventing terrorist attacks on vital installations, singling out Mindanao's power infrastructure.
"I am hereby ordering the increased security of vital power and transportation facilities in Mindanao," she said. "Let us begin the implementation of the Human Security Act by using it as a tool to prevent multi-billion-peso hydroelectric dams and power grids from being whacked by terrorists."
She said knocking out these facilities caused more than just inconvenience.
"The deeper reality is when there is no power, there is no work, and therefore, the Human Security Act is about defending our way of life," she said.
At the same time, Arroyo offered assurances that civil and human rights will be guaranteed and that violators of these rights will be dealt with by law.
Arroyo said all those, including government agencies, tasked with implementing the law must ensure that the rights of citizens are respected.
"Hand in hand with the need for economic prosperity is the need to strengthen our institutions of government to ensure that civil rights and social justice are available to all Filipinos, not just a privileged few," she said.
Various groups, including the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines, have expressed concern that the law might be used to quell dissent but Arroyo has said there is no stopping the HSA from taking effect on July 15.
In a declaration, participants of the summit expressed support for the HSA and pledged to help in the information drive on the law.
Arroyo also stressed that the military "must continue on its path to reform."
"They must become even more professional every day at the same time they fight to eliminate the armed terrorist threats to the nation from religious extremists or communist terrorists," she said.
Arroyo condemned anew political killings, including those of members of media.
"The political terrorists who live outside the boundaries of human justice and who have marked the stability of our nation and the rule of law for extinction live by no moral code," Arroyo said. "We must band together as a people and as public servants to stop this violence."
While reiterating her belief that 99 percent of the military and the police are good, she reminded them that "fidelity to the Constitution is a sacred duty."
"These public servants have a moral obligation to uphold the Constitution and to protect the innocent. For this reason, any violent crime that a member of the law enforcement or military community may commit against innocent people is even more wrong and must be stopped. No one is above the law," she said.
"We are entering a new era of civil and human rights. The front line of this effort is built on lifting up the poor and liberating them from poverty," she said.
At the same time, she hinted of what could be in store for communist rebels, saying communities will also be protected from harassment, kidnapping, and plunder "that are so often part of the communist terrorist[s] who flog a failed ideology."
"Our government will protect the political rights of any person who wishes to participate in our democracy, however we might disagree on philosophy and approach," she said.
"We cannot stand idly by, however, and let the purveyors of violence cloak their agenda behind the innocent men and women they hold hostage to their failed ideology. We will wrestle with these failed terrorists to the ground and free the nation to live in peace and harmony," Arroyo said.
She also said "sweeping legislation" will be proposed to Congress to help end the killings, which have earned the administration increasing criticism from the international community, and remove the stain of political violence from the nation.
This legislation, she said, will guarantee "swift justice" through more funding for special courts to prosecute rights violators.
The rights of victims will also be strengthened through more money for law enforcement and tougher penalties will be imposed for anyone committing a crime with a firearm.
Arroyo directed adviser for the peace process Jesus Dureza to make sure the provisions in the declaration of the summit are accomplished. She also instructed Budget Secretary Rolando Andaya Jr. to find a way to meet the 30 percent proposed increase budget for Mindanao.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
