Philippine suspects can be tried by the ICC. Reflections No 551, 1 September 2011
Submitted by FatherSean on Mon, 09/05/2011 - 08:23.
Philippine suspects can be tried by the ICC
Fr Shay Cullen's columns are published in The Manila Times,
in publications in Ireland, the UK, Hong Kong, and online.
Fr Shay Cullen's columns are published in The Manila Times,
in publications in Ireland, the UK, Hong Kong, and online.
The International Criminal Court, The Hague, Netherlands
The historic moment came on23 August when the symbolic gavel hit the desk of the Senate Speaker and Philippines, ratifying the Rome Statute and submitted itself to the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court (ICC). This was possible thanks to President Noynoy Aquino who sent it to the Senate for ratification. Senator Miriam Santiago has been its strongest advocate.
The days when any individual suspected and accused of committing or instigating genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes, and the crime of aggression are over. Those arrogant Philippine warlords, their assassins and goons who think they can rape, murder, plunder and devastate communities with impunity can and will be brought to answer for there crimes. The Philippine government will have to arrest and turn them over to the court in The Netherlands.
All who hunger and thirst of justice can look forward with hope that some of the worst perpetrators of these crimes in the Philippines and elsewhere will be brought to trial before the ICC, be judged fairly and punished if found guilty of their crimes. Those police, military and political commanders who run death squads, especially those who murder minors, can now be indicted for crimes of aggression or even for crimes against humanity. Military commanders who shell or bomb civilians and villages can be brought to trial. Even a sitting president, Omar al-Bashir, the President of Sudan, has been charged with war crimes and crimes against humanity and an arrest warrant has been issued for him. Libyan strongman Colonel Gaddafi will be put on trial one day too but must first be brought to trial in Libya.
Colonel Gaddafi (2009)
The most important ongoing trial that is to end soon is that of Congolese warlord Thomas Lubanga Dyilo. He has been detained in The Hague ICC jail in The Netherlands since 2006. He is the first to be brought before the court. This will be the first case of its kind where victims will be called to testify. Last week one youth was petrified with fear and could not testify because of the angry glaring of Lubanga.
The prosecution and court has to learn how to present child witnesses and empower encourage and protect them while giving testimony against their abusers. In this situation where a former child soldier was being intimidated by the accused, the court ordered a screen to be placed between the accused and his victim.
The Trial of Thomas Lubanga Dyilo at the International Criminal Court
This is the first international trial of a military commander for child abuse. Lubanga is the leader of the Union of Congolese Patriots (UPC) and the commander-in-chief of its military wing; the Forces Patriotiques pour la Libération du Congo (FPLC). He is on trial accused of kidnapping, abducting, coercing and recruiting children under the age of 15 to become soldiers. He taught hundreds of these children to kill, even their own parents, brothers, sisters and neighbors. The children were brutalized by being forced to participate in torture and the chopping off of prisoners’ arms and legs and if they refused they were savagely beaten and tortured themselves. They were forced to fight or be killed themselves. The atrocities Lubanga is accused of took place between September 2002 to 13 August 2003. The closing statements by the defense, prosecution and participating victims were scheduled to be delivered on 25 and 26 August 2011.
Filipinos can be charged for similar offences that harm groups of children such as those assassinated in Philippine cities, killings tolerated by city officials. According to the Coalition for the International Criminal Court also on trial for similar crimes are warlords Germain Katanga and Matthieu Ngudjolo Chui of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) whose tirial opened on 24 November 2009. It is the ICC's second trial.
Katanga and Ngudjolo are accused of war crimes and crimes against humanity allegedly committed in the village of Bogoro in the Ituri district of eastern DRC from January to March 2003. They are being tried for alleged murder or willful killing, inhumane acts, sexual slavery, rape, cruel or inhuman treatment, using children to participate actively in hostilities, outrages upon personal dignity, intentional attacks against the civilian population, pillaging and destruction of property. Similar atrocities have happened in the Philippines and have gone unpunished.
An international indictment is a reality facing Philippine warlords, mayors, governors, police and military commanders. The human rights organizations have gathered the evidence against them and can lodge it with the ICC anytime. May all who hunger and thirst for truth and justice have their fill and may the victims find closure, justice and peace. END
Military training of minors in the Philippines
When I came to the Philippines in 1971 military training was required for boys in highs schools. It was called, I think, PMT. It was glamorized to some extent by having girls as 'muses' when inspections would be made. Dictator Ferdinand Marcos made military training compulsory also for girls. The program was called 'Citizens Army Training' or 'CAT'. That acronym is still used for what is now called 'Citizenship Advancement Training'. The August 2005 Guidelines of the Department of Education show that the revised CAT still has a military component, one of three. However, it is optional.
With regard to uniforms, the Guidelines say
Is there any difference, except in degree, between Citizens Army Training as it was carried out for many years, and what Thomas Lubanga Dyilo is on trial for?
How to make things right? What does freedom denote?
In the Philippines, it takes to long to deliver abusers into the trial. It took more than ten years to find justice. It seems like we still under the colonization. No change at all, the only distinction is, we're under the colonization of the elite. Mostly elite people are being absolved regardless of the sin committed.
Like before, people are being killed either men or women,young or old. Citizens were oppressed, women were exploited and country men were deprived most of them are nowhere to be found.
Though we have the courage to say "HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY" during June 12. The question is, are we really experiencing freedom? What does freedom denote?
"If I have been able to see further, it was only because I stood on the shoulders of giants" - Sir Isaac Newton