Lumad leaders’ killing reaches UN rights council

BAGUIO CITY, Philippines – The killing of lumad leaders has reached the United Nations Human Rights Council, the human rights group Karapatan said.

Karapatan brought to the UN’s attention the killing of lumad leaders Dionel Campos and Datu Juvello Sinzo, and ALCADEV school director Emerito Samarca.

Karapatan asked the UNHRC for an investigation on the killings and evacuation of almost 3,000 lumads in Surigao del Sur.

Letters were sent to Dr. Chaloka Beyani, Special Rapporteur on the promotion of the human rights of internally displaced persons; Christof Heyns, SR on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions; Michel Forst, SR on situation of human rights defenders; and Filipina Victoria Lucia Tauli-Corpuz, on rights of the indigenous peoples.   

Tauli-Corpuz is a Kankanaey from Mountain Province in the Cordilleras.

“We are asking the UNHRC to investigate and recommend actions to the Philippine government on these issues,” Cristina Palabay, secretary general of Karapatan said.

The Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) asked for an impartial and speedy investigation of the killings.

CBCP head Lingayen-Dagupan Archbishop Socrates Villegas said the indigenous peoples and cultural communities are already disadvantaged in a number of ways. 

He said when their leaders and members suffer the tragedy recently visited upon them, this only underscores their plight as marginalized and underserved, apparently outside the pall of protection of the law. 

“This cannot be just.  This cannot be the will of God,” Villegas said.

Karapatan alleged that on Sept. 1, Campos was shot down in front of the whole community in Diatago, Lianga, Surigao del Sur. The gunmen were reportedly members of the “Magahat/Bagani” paramilitary forces.

Sinzo was separated from the crowd and reportedly tortured, his arms and legs hit with wooden stick before he was shot.

Samarca, on the other hand, was found dead inside the classroom of ALCADEV with an ear-to-ear slit on the throat and gunshot wounds in the chest.  

Palabay said witnesses noted troops from the Army’s 36th Infantry Battalion (IB), 74th IB and the Special Forces were at the periphery.

Karapatan further added the killing of Fr. Fausto Tentorio, the massacre of the Capion family, the murder of Datu Jimmy Liguyon and the Tabugol brothers, among others were done by paramilitary forces.

The military, on the other hand, denied the allegations and disowned the paramilitary group.

The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) said it will cooperate in any official investigation into the killing of lumads.

Brig. Gen. Joselito Kakilala, commander of the AFP Civil Relations Service (CRS) said the military leadership is willing to assist in any official investigation to identify the killers.

“We will cooperate and support any official investigation. Killing of defenseless civilian is outside of the military parameter. We do not condone these atrocities,” Kakilala said.

“We welcome the move by Karapatan to seek justice for our Lumad brothers…  However, we call on their group to be fair by seeking justice for all lumads who were killed by any group including those murdered by the NPA (New People’s Army) remnants which they publicly admitted,” he said. – With Eva Visperas, Jaime Laude, Rhodina Villanueva, Ben Serrano