‘Coddling the Butcher’ | Palparan petitions for bail as court denies plea for civilian jail transfer

“It is clear that this government is not a government of the people but of the corrupt and liars.” — Mrs. Erlinda Cadapan, mother of missing UP student Sherlyn

By JANESS ANN J. ELLAO
Bulatlat.com

MALOLOS, Bulacan — A Malolos Court denied the petition of the mothers of Sherlyn Cadapan and Karen Empeño to transfer retired Maj. Gen. Jovito Palparan to a civilian detention facility after the government refused to conform with the motion.

“It is clear that this government is not a government of the people but of the corrupt and liars,” Mrs. Erlinda Cadapan, mother of Sherlyn, said.

At the court hearing today, Oct. 20, the Department of Justice (DOJ) did not conform with the motion to transfer Palparan to civilian detention, which was filed by the families of the victims, the private complainants, through the National Union of Peoples’ Lawyers (NUPL) on Sept. 25.

Judge Teodora Gonzales of the Malolos Regional Trial Court Branch 14 said that, as a result, the court would not act on the said motion.

Private prosecutors, under the Philippine laws, are under the direct supervision of the public prosecutor.

The public prosecutors’s non-confirmation was inconsistent with the commitment given by DOJ Undersecretary Francisco Baraan III to the victims’ families in the Oct. 16 dialogue with Karapatan and other sectoral groups.

In a statement, Cristina Palabay, secretary general of Karapatan, said this confirms “who is protecting whom.”

Their refusal “affirms that Malacañang and the Justice Department protect and coddle The Butcher,” she said.

“The DOJ’s non-conformity with the NUPL’s motion has given Palparan’s lawyers a convenient argument in opposing the motion to keep Palparan in jail,” Palabay said.

(Photo by Raymund B. Villanueva / Kodao Productions)
(Photo by Raymund B. Villanueva / Kodao Productions)

Palabay said this goes to show that they are “playing with the emotions of the mothers.”

Palparan, the highest military officer ever indicted for a human rights violation case, was transferred to the Philippine Army Custodial Center in Fort Bonifacio, citing security risks.

Families of the disappeared and progressive groups deemed the transfer as the homecoming of the “posterboy of the counterinsurgency program Oplan Bantay Laya,” which did not discriminate between armed revolutionary forces and activists.

‘A small price to pay’

Judge Gonzales said that while she understood the sentiments of the families of the disappeared students, she stood with her earlier decision and dismissed outright the motion for reconsideration.

She added that the security extended to his two other co-accused Anotado and Osorio could also be extended to Palparan. This, she said, would minimize the cost.

But Edre Olalia, one of the private prosecutors, said during the hearing that it is “a small price to pay.”

He told the media that while they regret that the public prosecutors did not conform to their motion, families of the victims are considering elevating their petition to higher courts.

Petition for bail

In the case of Palparan, who is facing a capital offense, bail is not a right but a matter of discretion, according to Olalia, secretary general of the NUPL.

Palparan, in his prepared two-page petition for bail, cited the absence of conformity of public prosecutors and that the issue has already been discussed.

He added that no special treatment was accorded to him and that the detention facility under the supervision of the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP) is overcrowded.

Olalia countered Palparan’s motion during the hearing saying that they have raised new points in their motion for Palparan’s transfer, citing the mandate and capacity of BJMP to secure a high-risk detainee like Palparan.

Olalia added that Palparan’s mere transfer to a military jail is already special treatment given that he is already retired and he is not charged with violation of the Articles of War.

The state, he said, with all its power cannot protect one person.

“Gen. Palparan, after three years on the lam and holding almost everyone by the nose to get undeserved special treatment, has the audacity and impudence to ask that he be freed on bail,” Olalia said.

He also found it ridiculous that Palparan’s camp would ask to be transferred away from the court and now they want to transfer the venue of court because the detention facility was far from the court.

Mrs. Concepcion Empeño, Karen’s mother, told Bulatlat.com that said she is confident that the petition for bail would eventually be denied.

“There are strong evidences against Palparan. We have eyewitnesses who have positively identified him,” Mrs. Empeno said.

As the court proceeded to the introduction and marking of documentary evidence as part of the preliminary conference, Palparan’s lawyer Narzal Mallares protested, saying that they are not ready. But Judge Gonzales insisted that the marking of evidence would, in fact, help them with the bail hearings.

Mallares conceded.

Listen to the people

Outside the court, progressive groups held a protest action calling for the conviction of Palparan.

Roger Soluta, secretary general of Kilusang Mayo Uno, called on Judge Gonzales to listen to the demands of the people.

The pretrial conference is scheduled on Oct. 27. (https://www.bulatlat.com)

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