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KARAPATAN STRONGLY CONDEMNS THE TERROR BOMBING ATTACK IN GENERAL SANTOS
by Kelly Delgado, KARAPATAN-Socksargen
Tuesday, Dec. 14, 2004 at 5:57 PM
In the light of the recent police work lapses in the investigation of summary execution cases in General Santos City in which innocent victims were pronounced as victims of “drug-related killings” when they are not, it
is not far-fetched that the same inferior police work will lead to affect the investigations in the recent bombing incident. KARAPATAN exhorts officers of the law to exercise superior skill and sense of professionalism
in running after alleged perpetrators.
In view of the December 12, 2004 terrorist bombing of the General Santos
City public market, KARAPATAN – Socsksargen condemns in the strongest
possible terms the atrocities committed by the perpetrators in the
terroristic act which claimed the lives of 15 innocent civilians and
severely wounded 64 others. KARAPATAN joins the bereaved families of the
victims and calls for a speedy disposition of the case so that justice may
be achieved by the innocent victims.
However, KARAPATAN – Socsksargen forewarns the Moro community as well as the
civilian population at large that the investigations may again lead to a
series of human rights violations as manifested in the past experience in
which the Fitmart bombings in 2002 lead to a score of mass arrests,
arbitrary detention, illegal search and seizure, and individual victims
(Gensan 3) from the Moro people who were made as “fall guys” in the faulty
and hurried investigation by law enforcement officers.
In the light of the recent police work lapses in the investigation of
summary execution cases in General Santos City in which innocent victims
were pronounced as victims of “drug-related killings” when they are not, it
is not far-fetched that the same inferior police work will lead to affect
the investigations in the recent bombing incident. KARAPATAN exhorts
officers of the law to exercise superior skill and sense of professionalism
in running after alleged perpetrators.
In recent years, the country has been the target of terrorist attacks
including overseas Filipino workers abroad as a result of the Macapagal –
Arroyo government’s brazen subservience to the US – led War on Terror
declaration. The Arroyo government’s identical anti-terror campaign has done
nothing except multiply the number of human rights violations, even
exceeding the record of the Marcos regime as state security forces have
targeted civilians in its so called “anti-terrorism activities”.
The US and the Arroyo government uses as a justification the presence of so-
called terrorist groups (Abu Sayyaf, Pentagon, JI) and even revolutionaries
(CPP-NPA-NDFP, MILF) in the country for the holding of Balikatan military
exercises. Recently, the presence of US troops in Sosksargen was reported
and a plan of holding a Balikatan exercise in Sarangani is imminent to
happen next year.
KARAPATAN-SOCSKSARGEN CALLS FOR JUSTICE TO ALL VICTIMS OF THE RECENT
BOMBING! STOP PHILIPPINE INVOLVEMENT IN U.S.-LED WAR ON TERROR CAMPAIGN!
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