MANILA, Philippines — The University of the Philippines System has joined public clamor to safeguard the rights and well-being of three UP alumni who rights groups believe were taken into custody by state forces in connection to their work as activists.
A first under the Marcos Jr. administration, the UP system released a statement over the weekend urging the government and law enforcers to locate three UP alumni who have gone missing in recent months and to “uphold (their) constitutional rights.”
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This comes after four UP constituent universities — Manila, Baguio, Cebu and Visayas — expressed grave concern over the disappearance of indigenous rights activists Gene Roz Jamil “Bazoo” De Jesus and Dexter Capuyan (UP Baguio) and peasant and youth organizer Patricia Nicole Cierva (UP Manila).
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Just a day before the statement, Cierva and fellow peasant and youth organizer Cedric Casano, who soldiers reportedly arrested on May 18, appeared before the media as rebel surrenderees at a press conference held by the Cagayan governor and members of the provincial anti-communist task force.
Cierva and Casano were among the 20 individuals tagged as former rebels who were made to take their "oath of allegiance" to formalize their surrender, according to a Rappler report.
De Jesus, Capuyan still missing
However, former UP Baguio student leaders De Jesus and Capuyan have remained missing for more than a month since they disappeared. A fellow IP rights advocate said that they were taken by men who identified themselves as operatives of the police's Criminal Investigation and Detection Group.
Ecumenical youth group Student Christian Movement of the Philippines has sounded the alarm on at least 21 cases of alleged abductions of activists and organizers by military personnel since the start of Marcos' presidency, some reportedly killed or tortured. Along with De Jesus and Capuyan, many remain missing.
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“The UP System urges all government agencies especially those engaged in the administration of justice and law enforcement, with the support of the public in general, to ensure that our missing alumni are located, and to guarantee their safety and to uphold their constitutional rights,” the university said.
“The UP System reiterates its commitment to upholding human rights without which our freedoms cannot long endure.”
UP has long been regarded as a bastion of activism, with student-led movements to protect democracy and human rights gaining significant ground during the dictatorship of the president's father, Ferdinand Marcos Sr.
In recent years, the government's anti-communist task force and their sympathizers have accused UP of being a recruitment ground for the Communist Party of the Philippines-New People's Army-National Democratic Front — a claim that university officials continue to reject.