In Congressional testimony, church addresses Philippine abductions, political killings
Episcopal News Service. March 23, 2009 [032309-02]
Matthew Davies
Human rights violations in the Philippines, in particular the abduction of Episcopalian James M. Balao, have been addressed in Episcopal Church testimony sent to the United States House of Representatives' Committee on Appropriations and Sub-Committee on State, Foreign Operations.
The Rev. Canon Brian Grieves, the Episcopal Church's senior director for Mission Centers, and Alexander D. Baumgarten, international policy analyst in the church's government relations office, submitted the testimony, dated March 18, outlining the Episcopal Church's concern for the continuing widespread human rights abuses in the Philippines, where extra-judicial killings and enforced disappearances have been commonplace under Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo's presidency.
The full text of the testimony is available here.
Extra-judicial killings and abductions occur without the permission of a court or legal authority and are generally carried out by a government in order to rid itself of a disruptive influence. More than 900 such killings have been reported since Arroyo was sworn in as president in 2001, according to the human rights alliance KARAPATAN.
There have been 193 victims of enforced or involuntary disappearance under the Arroyo government.
Balao, who was abducted in September 2008, is a founding member of the Cordillera People's Alliance (CPA), a federation of grassroots organizations dedicated to the promotion and protection of indigenous peoples' rights.
"Over the past three years, the military has been publicly denouncing the CPA as a 'front organization' for the Communist party and accusing James of being a leader in the Communist party in the Cordilleras," the testimony notes. "As a result, CPA members are being assassinated, forcibly abducted, and tortured."
According to eyewitnesses, on September 17 Balao was scheduled to visit relatives when "five men in a white SUV forcibly took him," the testimony says. "While two men held James at gunpoint, two others dragged him into the SUV, and the fifth waved his gun at the shocked onlookers telling them that James was a wanted drug dealer. His disappearance came four months after he complained to family and friends that he was under constant surveillance."
Former Obispo Maximo (Prime Bishop) of the Philippine Independent Church Alberto Ramento was found stabbed to death at his rectory in October 2006. (A concordat of full communion is shared between the Philippine Independent Church, the U.S.-based Episcopal Church and the Episcopal Church in the Philippines.)
Known for his advocacy work for peace and human rights, Ramento had been an outspoken critic of the Philippine government.
Although there has been a marked decline in the number of extra-judicial killings in the last year, "partly as a result of oversight by the Congress," the testimony noted, "unfortunately, widespread human rights abuses continue and Congress must take additional action in order to improve conditions in the Philippines."
In February, Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori -- along with Grieves, Baumgarten, Office of Government Relations Director Maureen Shea, Ecumenical and Interfaith Officer Bishop Christopher Epting, and Program Officer for International Justice and Peacemaking Canon Margaret Larom -- joined other faith groups and organizations in a letter expressing their appreciation for efforts by the House and Senate Appropriations Committee "to ensure that U.S. military aid to the Philippines is not exacerbating an already tragic situation regarding human rights."
The March 18 testimony recommends that the United States government undertake "a thorough investigation as to where and how U.S. military aid to the Philippines has been spent, with particular emphasis on whether these funds are being used in ways that violate the people's right to life, liberty, and security.
"We believe the rights and freedom of the Filipino people, including James Balao, cannot be fully realized until these steps are taken."
The U.S.-based Episcopal Church has long supported the Episcopal Church in the Philippines (ECP) in its mission and more recently in its commitment to transforming unjust structures of society and in advocating against human rights abuses. (Founded in 1901 as a result of missionary work led by U.S. Episcopal Church Bishop Charles Henry Brent, ECP was inaugurated as an autonomous province in the Anglican Communion in 1990.)
"We have been painfully aware of the extra-judicial killings and disappearances that have terrorized the human rights community of the Philippines and deeply disappointed at the lack of response from the Philippines Government and with the continuation of U.S. military aid despite the lack of progress on human rights," the testimony reads. "Our Anglican partners in the Philippines tell us that the military includes them as 'terrorists' because of the church's mission work in far-flung villages considered revolutionary strongholds."
While it appears that some progress has been made, the Philippine Commission on Human Rights has said that "it cannot be underscored enough that hundreds remain missing, and hundreds dead without vindication in the courts of law."
Balao's case, the testimony notes, exemplifies the failure of the Writ of Amparo, created by the Philippine Supreme Court as a guarantee of protection against any "violation by an unlawful act or omission by a public official or employee." The testimony said that in practice the writ "has proven to be woefully lacking."
A Regional Trial Court decision found that the likely motive for Balao's disappearance was "his activist/political leanings," the testimony notes. Balao is well known for his work advocating for indigenous peoples' rights.
Balao's abduction, the testimony said, came at a time when organizations and individuals critical of the government were being tagged as terrorists or enemies of the state.
In mid-December, Jefferts Schori wrote to Arroyo and General Alexander B. Yano, chief of staff for the Armed Forces of the Philippines, calling Balao's abduction and the lack of news about his whereabouts "unconscionable."
"Our church and others here in the U.S., as well as many of our ecumenical colleagues, have been waiting for news from your government concerning this case, to no avail," she said. "No word has been given concerning his whereabouts, what possible charges there might be against him, nor even whether he is alive or dead."
Filipino Prime Bishop Edward Malecdan said that the ECP "is in solidarity with the written testimony and all who are concerned about the miserable state of human rights situation in the country."
The Rev. Rex Reyes, an ECP Episcopal priest serving as general secretary of the National Council of Churches of the Philippines, expressed his gratitude for the support of the U.S.-based Episcopal Church and its recent testimony. "We are grateful for the individual and united efforts of the churches in the U.S. to be in solidarity for the protection of human rights and civil liberties in the Philippines," he said.