The report summary is a very disturbing read. Will the full 6,000-page committee report be declassified? Will it push the Obama administration to prosecute those responsible for torture as international law requires? Unless criminal acts carry criminal penalties, there is little to prevent a future president from using torture again.
By BENJIE OLIVEROS Bulatlat perspective Reading through the 500-page Executive Summary of the report of the US Senate Select Committee on Intelligence on the CIA’s Detention and Interrogation Program, one could not help but feel revulsion and alarm at the official, systematic, and brutal application of torture on detainees the US suspected of having links…
U.S. military aid goes to wildly abusive regimes.
“The cases, filed as early as 2008, have been gathering dust in the records of the Ombudsman, which has shown nary a hint of interest or resolve in investigating criminal and ethical violations by top military brass down the line.”
Four Agusanon Lumad, including two minors, were on their way to the local Comelec to register as first-time voters for the upcoming Sangguniang Kabataan (Youth Council) and barangay elections when they were arrested, tortured and detained by members of paramilitary group Bagani forces.
By ALDWIN QUITASOL Northern Dispatch BAGUIO CITY — A 25-year-old charcoal maker in Lagangilang, Abra was taken and held by soldiers for nearly three days. According to the Abra Human Rights Movement (AHRM), Meymar Alcantara, a charcoal maker, went to a nearby forest of Kayapa village to gather firewood for charcoal on January 30 and…
By JOAN GARCIA Bulatlat.com VIGAN CITY, Ilocos Sur – Last July, the 81st Infantry Battalion of the Philippine Army (IBPA) arrived at the provinces of Ilocos Sur and Ilocos Norte. They replaced the 3rd IBPA that was encamped at 5 barangays in the two provinces. This August, the Peace and Development Teams of the 81st…
By RONALYN V. OLEA
“The silence of the Aquino administration is deafening. We believe that influential individuals in government and in the military are coddling Palparan.” – Karapatan
By RONALYN V. OLEA Bulatlat.com MANILA – Cesar Garganta, 28, merely wanted to earn extra income for the enrolment of his two children. Instead of money, what Garganta got was pain and trauma. On May 28, Garganta and his two friends went to work on a farm in Vista Hermosa village, Macalelon, Quezon. At around…
Run ‘hounds’ Palparan (Photo by Fred Dabu / Bulatlat.com)
By RONALYN V. OLEA Bulatlat.com MANILA – An 18-year old youth activist was nabbed allegedly by soldiers in Lopez, Quezon and tortured into admitting he is a member of the New People’s Army (NPA), according to human rights group Karapatan-Southern Tagalog. Franklin Barrera, district coordinator of Kabataan partylist, was taken by armed men at around…