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The military, leftist groups and private “goons”
of politicians were all involved in a rash of politically motivated
murders in the Philippines, a member of Melo Commission said
Saturday.
Catholic Bishop Juan de Dios
Pueblos, a member of the commission created by President Arroyo to
investigate the murder of leftist activists, journalists and
officials, said it had submitted its conclusions.
“There are different results in
the killings. We have identified that there are killings really
perpetuated by the military,” he said. “There are other killings
by politicians and the military, politicians and their goons and
killings as part of a [family] vendetta.
“There are also some killings
perpetrated by the leftists,” he said, referring to the communist
New People’s Army [NPA] and their front groups.
“The thing that is bad in the
country is that vigilante killings are tolerated,” he said,
referring to extrajudicial murders.
Military generals appeared before
the inquiry but merely denied they were involved in the murders
without making any attempt to explain or investigate the killings,
Pueblos said.
“I do believe they have to do
more than just say that and wash their hands,” the bishop said,
adding that leftists such as Karapatan, the local human-rights
group, had refused to speak to the commission after accusing the
military of most of the killings.
He did not say which group was
responsible for the majority of the murders, which have drew strong
criticism from the European Union and international human-rights
groups.
This criticism prompted the
President to create the commission headed by former Supreme Court
Associate Justice Jose Melo to look into the killings.
The bishop would also not say
what the findings of the commission were but remarked that “we are
actually encouraging the President to make a statement to stop
killings in whatever form. Not just the [killings of] militants and
media people but all killings.”
“We reached that certain point
[where we should give] that kind of principle that the end does not
justify the means,” he said.
Among the measures the commission
is recommending is to make military officers culpable for murders
carried out by their soldiers, he added.
Human-rights groups charge that
more than 180 activists—including journalists, human-rights
workers, Left-wing politicians, trade unionists and lawyers—were
assassinated this year for their criticism of those in power.
However, the military has denied
it is responsible and charged that many of those killed were slain
as part of an internal purge by the 7,000-strong communist insurgent
movement which has been waging a Maoist campaign to seize power for
over three decades.
The NPA has admitted carrying out
purges in the past but has largely denied they are behind the latest
rash of murders.
--AFP
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