Philippines: Arbitrary arrest of five farmers

Case PHL 160506

Arbitrary arrest / Incommunicado detention

The International Secretariat of OMCT requests your URGENT intervention in the following situation in the Philippines.

Brief description of the situation

The International Secretariat of OMCT has been informed by the Task Force Detainees of the Philippines (TFDP), a member of the OMCT network, of the arbitrary arrest of five farmers, allegedly suspected as NPA members, at Barangay Sungay in Tagaytay City by members of the Philippine National Police (PNP)-Calabarzon on 28 April 2006.

According to the information received, Mr. Riel Custodio, Mr. Axel Alejandro Pinpin, Mr. Aristides Sarmiento, Mr. Enrico Ybañez and Mr. Michael Masayes, now referred to as the Tagaytay five, were on their way to Manila after they left Barangay Tolentino in Tagaytay City around 6.25pm. The Tagaytay five were reached by mobile phones by their family and friends until 7.00pm after which they could no longer be reached and their whereabouts remained unknown. Although the families of the five men went to different military camps and to police precincts, both the police and the military denied having the five men in custody. It is reported that Mr. Riel Custodio, Mr. Axel Alejandro Pinpin and Mr. Aristides Sarmiento are known members of the Kalipunan ng mga Magsasaka sa Kabite (Kamagsasaka-Ka or Farmers’ Federation in Cavite, central/southern Luzon).

According to the information received, on 1 May 2006, the Tagaytay five were presented to the media in Camp Crame. According to the Philippine police, mobile phones, two laptops, a flash and floppy discs were seized from the men. Moreover, it was alleged by the police that on the mobile phones text messages between suspected members of the New People’s Army (NPA) and unidentified members of the Magdalo group of rebel soldiers, involved in the Oakwood mutiny of 2003, were found. Furthermore, assorted receipts, allegedly showing the purchase of ammonium nitrate and 8000 small metal balls, basic components for the manufacture of improvised bombs, were seized as well.

It is reported that after they were held incommunicado for almost a week, the Tagaytay five were presented to Judge Edwin Larida at the Tagaytay City Regional Court on 5 May 2006 and charged with rebellion for their alleged plan to infiltrate the Labor Day celebration. The PNP had earlier denied of having custody of the five men. Shortly after this the Tagaytay men were allowed to see their relatives, who staged a rally in front of Camp Vicente Lim in Calamba, Laguna, where the men are currently detained. At the moment, no date for the trial is known.

Action requested

Please write to the authorities in the Philippines urging them to:
1. Guarantee the physical and psychological integrity of Mr. Riel Custodio, Mr. Axel Alejandro Pinpin, Mr. Aristides Sarmiento, Mr. Enrico Ybañez and Mr. Michael Masayes;
2. Ensure the immediate release of all persons arrested in the absence of valid legal charges, and if such charges exist, ensure that they are given a prompt and fair trial, in which their procedural rights are guaranteed at all time;
3. Order a thorough and impartial investigation into these events, in order to identify all those responsible, bring them to trial and apply to them the civil, penal and/or administrative sanctions provided by law;
4. Guarantee the respect of human rights and the fundamental freedoms throughout the country in accordance with national laws and international human rights standards.

Addresses

• Mrs. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, President of the Republic of the Philippines, New Executive Building, Malacañang Palace Compound, J.P. Laurel St., San Miguel, Manila, Philippines, Fax: +632 735 6192; +632 736 1010; Email: opnet@ops.gov.ph; corres@op.gov.ph
  
• Secretary Avelino Cruz Jr., Department of National Defense, 3rd Floor, DND Building, Camp Aguinaldo, EDSA, Quezon City, Philippines, Fax: +632 911 6213, Email: sndcruz@dnd.gov.ph; ajcruz@dnd.gov.ph
  
  
• Hon. Raul M. Gonzalez, Secretary, Department of Justice, Padre Faura Street, 1004, Manila, Philippines, Telefax: +632 521-1614, Email: sad@doj.gov.ph
  
  
• Hon. Purificacion Valera Quisumbing, Chairperson, The Commission on Human Rights, SAAC Building, Commonwealth Avenue, U.P. Complex, Diliman, Quezon City, Philippines, Fax: +632 929-0102, Email: drpvq@chr.gov.ph
  
  
• Arturo C. Lomibao, Police Director General, Chief, Philippine National Police, National Headquarters, PNP Camp Crame, Quezon City, Philippines, Tel: +632 726-4361/726-4366/726-4329 Fax: +632 724-8763
  
  
• Hon. Loretta Ann Rosales, Chairperson of the Committee on Human Rights, House of Representatives, Batasan Hills, Quezon City, Philippines, Telefax: +632 931 6288, Email: conglapr@nsclub.net
  
  
• Hon. Francis Pangilinan, Senator, The Senate, Rm. 526 GSIS Bldg., Financial Center, Roxas Blvd., Pasay City, Philippines, Fax: +632 552-6747, Email: kilosko2004@yahoo.com
  
  
• Ambassador Enrique A. Manalo, Permanent Mission of the Philippines to the United Nations in Geneva, Avenue Blanc 47, 1202 Geneva, Switzerland, Fax: +41 (0)22 716 19 32, Email: mission.philippines@ties.itu.in
  
  
• Philippine Embassy in Brussels, Avenue Moliere / Molierelaan 297, 1050 Brussels, Belgium, Tel; +32 (0)2 340 33 77 / (0)2 340 33 78, Fax: +32 (0)2 345 64 25.

Please also write to the embassies of the Philippines in your respective country.

***
Geneva, 16 May 2006

Kindly inform us of any action undertaken quoting the code of this appeal in your reply.