THE Cordillera arm of the Human Rights Alliance (CHRA) and the Cordillera People’s Alliance (CPA) on February 12 put out a statement calling for a stop to the intensifying attacks against human-rights defenders in the region.
This was supported by a network of other organizations such as the Chestcore and the Movement against Tyranny (MAT).
“There is no let-up to the intensifying human- rights violations since February 2017 when indigenous peoples and advocates have fallen victims to criminalization, illegal arrests and detention, politcal villification, harassment and intimidation,” the statement said. “If not put to a stop, we fear that human-rights violations will escalate to extrajudicial killings and abductions as what we experienced in past regimes.”
Fifteen cases of illegal arrests and detention have been made since February 2017, the statement said.
Members of the panels said they are experiencing constant threats to their lives and suspicious acts of surveillance, adding the presence of the 24th Infantry Batallion, 81st IBPA and 71st Division Reconnaissance Company under the 7th ID have militarized communities covered by their operations in Abra and the Ilocos Region.
A partial list of incidents since February last year given by the group included that of Sarah Avellon- Likes. She is a Kanakaney-Igorot who was detained for two days without charges and thereafter charged with arson and robbery with intimidation and was released only after posting bail. She is a pioneer of the Cordillera People’s Alliance.
It was also reported that from March 13 to the last week of March last year at least 14 bombs were dropped in Malibcong, Abra affecting at least 56 families, including 200 children. The bombs caused forest fires, damaged farm fields, and forced schools to suspend classes. Also on March 18 and 19, soldiers encamped near residential areas and a minor and two women were arrested and detained in separate incidents.
Five women activists—Sarah Abellon-Akiles, Sherry Mae Soledad, Joanne Villanueva, Rachel Mariano and Asia Isabelle Gepte—were charged with allegedly trumped-up cases of frustrated murder related to a gun-firing incident on August 4, 2017 in Sigay, Ilocos Sur but have since posted bail except for Asia.
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Other woes of these people’s organizations include threats, search warrants for alleged possessions of firearms, death threats and red tagging.
CHRA Vice Chairman Audrey Beltran said the filng of cases against human-rights defenders is reminiscent of the crackdown against activists during martial law under Ferdinand Marcos.
CPA Secretary General Bestang Dekdeken said the filing of cases serves foreign mining and energy companies, land grabbers, human-rights violators and corrupt politicians and that leaders of people’s organizations in localities are defending their ancestral lands and self-determination against mining and energy projects.
About 60 percent of the Cordillera land area has mining applications and that there are more than 100 energy projects awarded by the Department of Energy, Dekdeken said.
They also fear that charter change will take away economic-protectionist provisions and subject ancestral lands to mining and energy projects.
In response to all these threats, Bestang said is their move to organize the Cordillera arm of the national Movement Against Tyranny (MAT) which will be launched in Baguio on February 23 with conveners Inday Espina-Verona and Mae Paner, also known as Juana Change.
“For every problem, there will be a response. The Kaigorotan is a brave people,” their statement said.