MANILA, Philippines — The Court of Appeals ordered the Armed Forces of the Philippines and Philippine National Police to present missing indigenous peoples’ rights activists Gene Roz Jamil “Bazoo” De Jesus and Dexter Capuyan.
In a resolution on Tuesday, the 13th Division of the appellate court granted the petition for writ of habeas corpus filed by the families of De Jesus and Capuyan last week against Lt. Gen. Andres Centino of the AFP, Police Gen. Benjamin Acorda Jr. of the PNP, Police Brig. Gen. Romeo Caramat of the police’s Criminal Investigation and Detection Group, and Police Col. Dominic Baccay of the Rizal provincial police office.
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Habeas corpus—Latin for “produce the body”—is an order to present a person before a court to determine if the arrest or imprisonment is legal or if a person must be released from custody.
The CA ordered the respondents to appear before the court on Friday, and “produce and bring the bodies and persons” of De Jesus and Capuyan, if found to be in their custody.
The respondents were also directed to show cause why the two missing activists should remain in their custody.
The Philippine Task Force for Indigenous Peoples’ Rights welcomed the issuance of a writ of habeas corpus. De Jesus is a staff of TFIP.
“We demand that law enforcement authorities adhere to the resolution ordered by the CA. We hold them accountable for the abduction of Bazoo and Dexter following the PNP and AFP’s claim that Dexter is a New People's Army member,” said Tyrone Beyer, campaign and advocacy officer of TFIP.
The relatives of De Jesus and Capuyan filed their petition for habeas corpus after only three of the 14 military and police facilities that the search team have visited since May 3 signed the inquiry form required by the Anti-Enforced or Involuntary Disappearance Act of 2012.
De Jesus and Capuyan, former student leaders at the University of the Philippines Baguio, went missing on the evening of April 28 in Taytay, Rizal. According to their friends and colleagues, the two were taken by men who identified themselves as members of the police’s CIDG, and were forced into different vehicles.
The Student Christian Movement of the Philippines has monitored at least 21 cases of alleged abductions of activists and organizers by state forces since Marcos assumed office. Some were found, while others suffered torture and were killed. Many—like De Jesus and Capuyan—remain missing.
“We urge the government and its forces to halt their continuing attacks on civil and political rights of Filipinos mandated by the Philippine Constitution, Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and other global mandates,” Beyer said.