by MLC | Mar 28, 2017 | News
By Trisha Macas
Source: GMA News
Malacañang on Tuesday announced that 4,000 of around 75,000 Martial Law victims during the dictatorship of late strongman Ferdinand Marcos would soon receive a portion of their claims from the Human Rights Victims’ Claims Board (HRVCB).
The release of claims will come after the HRVCB received P300 million from the Bureau of Treasury for the partial monetary reparation. HRVCB has already written to the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) for the release of the amount.
“The HRVCB and its resolutions committed to distribute 50 percent of the total estimated reparation value due to the first 4,000 eligible claimants consisting of 2,661 conclusively presumed victims and 1,339 new applicants,” presidential spokesperson Ernesto Abella said in a briefing.
“The claims board following the point system prescribed the reparation law which came up with a total of 23,567 points to be awarded to the first batch of claimants,” he added, referring to the point system that would determine how much each claimant would get.
Based on the point system stated in the reparation law, the Claims Board noted that 23,567 points are to be awarded to the first batch of claimants, with every one point equivalent to P25,000 rounded up.
This brings the total reparation value to P589 million for the first batch of claimants alone.
After meeting with the Samahan ng Ex-Detainees Laban sa Detensyon at Aresto (SELDA) in January, President Rodrigo Duterte ordered concered agencies and officials to expedite the release the compensation for Martial Law victims.
SELDA sought Duterte’s assistance since Martial Law victims have yet to receive recognition and compensation four years since Republic Act No. 10368 or the Human Rights Victims Reparation and Recognition Act of 2013 was passed.
According to the reparation law, the Board will follow the point system for the determination of the award:
- Victims who died or who disappeared and are still missing shall be given 10 points;
- Victims who were tortured and/or raped or sexually abused shall he given six to nine points;
- Victims who were detained shall be given three to five points; and
- Victims whose rights were violated under Section 3, paragraph (b), nos. (4), (5) and (6) of RA No. 10368 shall be given one to two points
While the HRCVB has already approved 4,000 claims, around 75,000 claimants are still waiting for their reparation to be resolved. The HRCVB has only until May 12, 2018 to complete the reparation process of all claimants.
by MLC | Feb 21, 2017 | News
By Joseph Tristan Roxas
Source: GMA News
A separate event will be held on Saturday, February 25, the 31st anniversary of the EDSA People Power, to commemorate the victory achieved in the historic uprising.
Former Commission on Human Rights (CHR) chairperson Etta Rosales on Tuesday said the rally is organized by the February 25 Coalition and will start at 4 p.m. in Barangay White Plains in Quezon City.
“Ang martsa sa White Plains ay para magkaroon ng pagdiriwang tungkol dun sa makasaysayang tagumpay ng mamamayang Pilipino sa pagpapatalsik ng isang diktador,” Rosales said.
Rosales said the rally is separate from the celebration organized by the Duterte administration that will be held in Camp Aguinaldo.
She said the February 25 Coalition is composed of various groups with members who are both millenials and people who experienced Martial Law under then-President Ferdinand Marcos.
The People Power uprising ended Marcos’ decades-old reign.
Rosales, meanwhile, was dismayed by President Rodrigo Duterte’s lukewarm attitude towards the EDSA revolt anniversary.
“Nakakalungkot naman kung ganon dahil, usually, dapat yung presidente mismo ang mangunguna na matutuwa at ipabubunyag sa publiko at sa international community na ito ay isang makasaysayang panahon sa pagpapatalsik ng diktadurya na ginawa ng taong bayan,” she explained.
Rosales added that instead of being indifferent, Duterte should instead be proud of the milestone achieved in 1986 since the toppling of the Marcos dictatorship and the ending of its abuses was accomplished by Filipinos on their own initiative.
“Dapat matuwa siya nun. Ito ay gawa ng mamamayang Pilipino, at ito yung katotohanan. Ibunyag ang katotohanan sa kasaysayan, at ito yung pagnanakaw, pandarambong, at yung mismong pagpatay ng napakarming mamamayang Pilipino,” said Rosales during the relaunching of Primitivo Mijares’ book The Conjugal Dictatorship of Ferdinand and Imelda Marcos at the Bantayog ng mga Bayani.
by MLC | Feb 10, 2017 | News
Source: Inquirer.net
The first 4,000 victims of martial law abuses who will soon receive partial compensation from the government are mostly those who won a class suit in the United States against the estate of the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos in 1994.
Lina Sarmiento, chair of the Human Rights Victims’ Claims Board (HRVCB), said official notices would be sent to the 4,000 claimants by mail “within the next two weeks.”
A list of eligible claimants will be published in major newspapers once a week this month beginning Friday, Feb. 10.
The list will be published in the Inquirer on Feb. 10, 17 and 24.
The 9,539 martial law victims who were awarded $2 billion in civil damages by a US district court in Hawaii in 1994 are automatically considered among those who will receive reparations under the Human Rights Victims Reparation and Recognition Act of 2013 (Republic Act No. 10368).
The law recognizes victims of human rights violations during the Marcos dictatorship and provides reparations for them using P10 billion in ill-gotten wealth of the late strongman recovered by the government from Swiss banks.
“Of the members of the class suit who filed the case in Hawaii, more than 3,000 filed their claims with us. We just rounded it off to 4,000” for the distribution of initial payments,” Sarmiento told the Inquirer on Thursday.
“Right now, we are in the process of finalizing all the decisions, editing the decisions for all the 4,000 claims that are already approved,” she added.
All the 4,000 decisions will be mailed simultaneously to the claimants to give them a chance to appeal the monetary awards before these become final.
Aside from the 4,000 approved claims, “many” others have been approved out of the 30,027 claims from victims of summary killing, torture, forced disappearance, rape and other harassment that have been evaluated so far, Sarmiento said.
She, however, declined to divulge the other claims for now, saying the board planned to finish first evaluating all the 75,730 claims filed before it announced the list of approved claims.
Sarmiento also said the board would not yet send out notices of denial of claims. “I don’t want to create confusion,” Sarmiento said.
If the claimants are not satisfied with their monetary award, they have 10 days to file an appeal upon receipt of the decision.
Those who want to oppose an award have 15 days from the last day of publication to file an opposition before the board.
by MLC | Dec 1, 2016 | News
By Rose An Jessica Dioquino
Source: GMA News
Some 19 names were added to the list “heroes and martyrs” who fought against dictator Ferdinand Marcos’ martial rule when their names were etched on another installation at the “wall of remembrance” at the Bantayog ng mga Bayani in Quezon City on Wednesday.
In an hour-long ceremony that coincided with the observance of Andres Bonifacio’s birth anniversary, the Bantayog enrolled the new batch of movers against the Marcos dictatorship, which included student-activists, labor leaders, artists, and journalists.
Former Sen. Wigberto Tañada, who now heads the Bantayog ng mga Bayani Foundation, noted the importance of hailing these real heroes, in contrast to the surprise burial of the former dictator at the Libingan ng mga Bayani last November 18.
“Kaisa po at sinusuportahan ng Bantayog ang paninindigan ng maraming Filipino na si Ferdinand Marcos ay hindi bayani. Marcos is no hero,” Tañada declared.
“Kaya, mga kasama, mga kaibigan, mahalaga at importante po itong araw na ito. Sa araw na ito kikilalanin natin, pahahalagahan natin, at pararangalan natin ang labing-siyam na tunay na bayani ng ating bayan. Dahil po sila ay hayagang tumulong at lumaban sa pagpabagsak, pagpapatalsik ng diktadurang rehimen ni Marcos,” he added.
In this year’s list was the late Sen. Jovito Salonga, founding chairman of the Bantayog ng mga Bayani Foundation.
Salonga passed away last March.
Salonga, a staunch critic of the Marcos regime, was among the victims of the 1971 Plaza Miranda bombings, during which two hand grenades were thrown during an opposition party rally. The incident left him blind in one eye and deaf in one ear.
He defended political prisoners detained without charges after Martial Law was declared in 1972. Then post-dictatorship, he headed the Philippine Commission on Good Government and eventually, the Senate, from 1987-1991.
Another on the list was the late Philippine Daily Inquirer editor-in-chief Letty Jimenez-Magsanoc, and journalists Lourdes Estella-Simbulan and Antonio Zumel.
Youth leaders during Martial Law were also included: Eduardo Aquino, Fortunato Camus, Edgardo Dojillo, Joel Cecilio Jose, Marciano Anastacio Jr., Ricardo Filio, and Hernando Cortez.
The late beauty queen Margarita “Maita” Gomez and director Behn Cervantes were also feted, along with labor leader Simplicio Villados, soldier Danilo Vizmanos, Manuel Dorotan, members of the clergy including Bishop Julio Labayen, Romulo Peralta, and Jose Tangente.
Wednesday’s ceremony was a seeming reunion of family and friends, many of whom were involved in the movement against the dictatorship.
Among the guests who took the stage several times to honor the new “heroes,” were Satur Ocampo, Neri Colmenares, National Democratic Front’s (NDF)’s Luis Jalandoni and Benito and Wilma Tiamzon, Social Welfare Secretary Judy Taguiwalo, and National Artist for Literature Bienvenido Lumbera.
Vice President Leni Robredo and Sen. Francis Pangilinan were also present during the event.
by MLC | Nov 29, 2016 | News
Source: GMA News
Sen. Manny Pacquiao, during Monday night’s episode of “Bawal ang Pasaway kay Mareng Winnie”, said that there was nothing wrong with burying the former President and dictator Ferdinand Marcos in the Libingan Ng Mga Bayani because no one but God was in a position to pass judgment on the late strongman.
“Kung baga, ang sabi ko sa kanila, ang Panginoon nagpapatawad sa atin, na Panginoon is perfect, holy. Tayo, holy ba tayo?” asked Pacquiao. “Makasalanan din tayo. Sino yung walang kasalanan, at hindi nakagawa ng kasalanan, ikaw, may karapatan ka hindi magpatawad.”
Pacquiao also suggested that Martial Law and torture victims should just simply forgive the late dictator. “Mga nagawa niya (Marcos), dapat patawarin na lang sila,” the senator stated.
He also believed that Marcos’ dictatorship and eventual ouster did not disqualify him from interment at the LNMB. Rather, Pacquiao argued, Marcos became dictator only after he became president, and being elected president qualified him for the LNMB.
“Ganito kasi yun, eh. Na una ba ang pagiging diktador niya bago naging presidente, o na una yung presidente bago naging diktador? Pagka presidente niya, qualified na to be buried,” Pacquiao explained.
The boxing champion also said that with Marcos’ burial in the LNMB, the issues surrounding his dictatorship, plunder, human rights violations would be buried along with him. “Ganito po kasi yun, eh. Matagal na po iyang issue na yan. Hanggat hindi nailibing yan, ang issue buhay na buhay. Hangat hindi nalilibing yan hindi mawawala ang issue. Pag nalibing na yan, hindi na mapagusapan niyan,” Pacquiao pointed out.
Critics responded angrily to the surprise burial of Ferdinand Marcos at the LNMB, with a spontaneous protest held at the People Power Monument along EDSA.
Another, thousands-strong “Black Friday” protest was also held at the Luneta on November 25, with another such demonstration scheduled for November 30.
by MLC | Nov 28, 2016 | News
By Virgil Lopez
Source: GMA News
A group representing families of victims of enforced disappearances during Martial Law asked the Supreme Court (SC) on Monday to overturn its decision allowing the burial of former President Ferdinand Marcos Sr. at the Libingan ng mga Bayani.
In a motion of reconsideration filed by Albay Rep. Edcel Lagman, the families of the victims said the court’s decision was a “veritable honor” accorded to a “disgraced” leader who was deposed through a people’s revolt in 1986 over allegations of massive human rights violations and corruption.
Lagman said no less than the SC acknowledged that Marcos amassed ill-gotten wealth during his 20-year rule.
“His burial in the memorial of good men impedes on the continuing quest for illusive justice for the victims of martial law, perpetuates the impunity of his transgressions and mocks the unfinished task of recovering his hoard of ill-gotten wealth,” the motion stated.
“It is not remote to realize that the Marcos burial in the Libingan ng mga Bayani is a gross distortion, a malevolent revision and a wanton derogation of Philippine history.”
Lagman, counsel for the Families of Victims of Involuntary Disappearance (FIND), also invoked the following grounds to convince the high court to change ruling, which was settled by a vote of 9-5 on November 8:
- Marcos’ burial in the Libingan ng mga Bayani (LNMB) will not lead to closure
- AFP Regulations G 161-375 dated September 11, 2002 issued by the Department of National Defense is not effective and enforceable due to absence of registration with the Office of the National Administrative Registrar (ONAR) of the University of the Philippine Law Center as required by the Administrative Code of 1987
- There are laws and SC decisions which militate against and effectively prohibit the Marcos burial in the Libingan ng mga Bayani
- The message of the EDSA People Power Revolution is clear and resounding: Marcos was ousted for being a despot, plunderer and violator of human rights
- When the totality of Marcos as a man is weighed in the balance, whatever achievements he has done for the country are completely nullified by his cardinal sins against the nation, for which he is not entitled to be buried in the LNMB
- The Marcos family had waived his burial in the Libingan ng mga Bayani 24 years ago
- The petitions do not involve a political question, which is an almost extinct invocation
- Respondents committed grave abuse of discretion amounting to lack or excess of jurisdiction
- Petitioners have legal personality to file cases, did not violate the “hierarchy of courts” doctrine, and did not have to exhaust administrative remedies
- Marcos does not deserve the honor of being interred in the Libingan ng mga Bayani even as a former President and soldier
Addiction to deception
Marcos’ remains were flown from Ilocos Norte to Manila in the morning of November 18 and were buried at noon of the same day at the heroes’ cemetery.
Backed by President Rodrigo Duterte, the surprise interment was met with condemnation by several quarters who conducted protests across the country.
Lagman said the “speed and stealth” by which the burial was carried out by the immediate members of the Marcos family “showed their incorrigible addiction to deception, underhandedness and abuse, which the Supreme Court must never condone.”
The lawmaker also renewed his plea for the exhumation of “whatever was interred as Marcos mortal remains” and subject these to forensic examination to determine what actually was buried at the military shrine.
Another motion is pending before the SC to hold the Marcoses and some military officials in contempt for proceeding with the burial.
The 15-man SC will hold its weekly session on Tuesday.
