Melo report hits ‘small AFP group’

There is evidence that the military "allowed, tolerated and even encouraged" political assassinations, and that retired Maj. Gen. Jovito Palparan was among those who justified the killings, according to the report of a special commission.

The report – made public only yesterday – of the fact-finding commission headed by former Supreme Court Justice Jose Melo, also stated that those killed by the Communist Party of the Philippines-New People’s Army (CPP-NPA) far outnumber the victims of summary executions carried out by "a small military group."

It urged President Arroyo to take the lead to stop the killings.

"The Armed Forces is not a state within a state," it said. "If extrajudicial executions are to be stopped ... it must start with the President."

The Melo Commission said it is not "ignorant or unmindful of the crimes committed" by the communist rebels or the benefits of having "a decent military to defend our freedom and way of life."

But it also urged the military not to stoop to the level of communist rebels "with their lawless, treacherous methodologies" but to respect the rule of law in running after enemies of the state.

"To be sure, those slain by rebels and insurgents far outnumber the killings attributed by the leftist (groups) to the government. Many of our sons, husbands, and fathers have been slain or injured in encounters with the NPA, or have been assassinated by dreaded hitmen and mowed down in other acts of terrorism of the CPP-NPA," the 86-page report said.

The Melo Commission concluded that "a small military group" is behind the rash of killings of left-wing activists, dismissing the military claims of internal purges initiated by communist rebels.

The inquiry report was made public by Malacañang yesterday a day after a UN envoy said the military was in "almost total denial" about the need to address the wave of political killings which embarrassed the country in the international community.

The government had declined to make public the report of the Melo Commission until UN investigator Philip Alston on Wednesday called on President Arroyo to release it after concluding that the military was behind many of the killings.

The Melo report stated that military commanders have allowed and tolerated the killings.

The report stressed a "sanctioned policy in the Armed Forces or in the civilian government" to undertake extra-judicial killings.

It said the killings were apparently justified on the premise that the victims are enemies of state that deserve immediate execution.

By declaring the victims as enemies of the state, in effect justified the military assassins to "arrogated unto themselves the power of the courts and of the executive branch of government."

Based on their six-month investigations, the panel said strong indications point to "a small group in the Armed Forces" that had carried out the "elimination of the civilian activists" after being emboldened by the pronouncements of Palparan and Armed Forces chief Gen. Hermogenes Esperon.

The panel noted the statements made by Esperon and Palparan in claiming that some members of leftist groups and party list organizations should be "neutralized" because they are enemies of the state.

Because of such statements, the fact that certain elements in the military "take a more direct approach in neutralizing the enemy," the panel said.

With the support of the top brass, the group has the "motive" and the "capacity and opportunity" to carry out the killings of militants.

The panel said Palparan and his superior officers should be held responsible for failing to prevent, punish or even condemn the killings.

"The only other theory left is that certain elements within or connected to some military officers are responsible for the killings," the report said.

"The victims, according to General Palparan and others, were enemies of the state — hence their neutralization."

‘Well-trained professionals’

The report noted the assassins are highly trained in their way of killing their prey.

"Many of the attacks were carried out in daytime and consummated with a limited number of shots hitting their intended target," the report said.

"The efficiency and confident manner with which the attacks were undertaken clearly suggests that the killers were well-trained professionals who knew their business well."

The report said the group of assassins has the capacity or the means to carry out the killings. "In fact, the killings appear to be well-organized and the killers adequately equipped."

With the CPP-NPA virtually eliminated as suspects, "only a group with certain military capabilities can succeed in carrying out an orchestrated plan of eliminating, its admitted enemies," the panel said.

The panel said the military made a contradiction in pushing its "purge theory" since it also claimed most of the victims were killed in legitimate encounters with security forces.

If the CPP-NPA had indeed carried out the internal purgings, then it would have been in the interest and opportunity for the military to bring in the victims, being possible defectors and informants, to the government’s fold.

"Enigmatically, the military has continued to classify the victims as ‘enemies of the state.’ This throws the whole purge theory out of line and makes it somewhat improbable," the report stated.

The AFP has been battling for decades communist insurgents, and slammed human rights groups in ignoring the numbers of people killed by the NPA.

Local rights group Karapatan says more than 830 people have been murdered for political motives since Mrs. Arroyo came to power in 2001 — many of them leftists, and some of them accused by the military of links to the NPA.

But the military claimed Karapatan’s details were inflated and charged that many of the dead are actually guerrillas who were purged by the communists or slain in clashes with the government forces.

Alston on Wednesday said the Philippine government was responsible for a climate of impunity but said he did not have evidence to support allegations from militants that Mrs. Arroyo had ordered or condoned the murders.

Officials though stressed Alston did not consider the country’s security situation when he concluded the AFP had something to do with the killings.

"Mr. Alston is the one in denial of the atrocities of the other side," Justice Secretary Raul Gonzalez said in a news conference yesterday.

"You can tell that son-of-a-gun that he doesn’t know what he’s talking about."

AFP chief Gen. Hermogenes Esperon, for his part, said the Melo Commission’s conclusion "is strained, unfair and a blank accusation against any member or any group from the Armed Forces of the Philippines" because it did not cite any strong evidence or identify the suspects.

In a radio interview, Palparan said both Alston’s allegations and the Melo commission’s findings were "designed to blame the military" and that "their circumstantial evidence is so shallow it looks like they don’t know what they are doing."

Esperon said he welcomed Alston’s findings but pointed out the AFP is not in denial about anything.

"We believe that Alston may be in a state of denial himself," Esperon blurted out.

He charged the Australian lawyer had not even considered the military’s allegations that the NPA is behind over a thousand murders.

Military officials claimed Alston may have been influenced by militant groups over the claims.

"I have the feeling that he (Alston) was not so enthusiastic then I submitted to him the 1,227 liquidations by the New People’s Army," Esperon said.

Esperon said Alston failed to comprehend the insurgency problem in the country.

"I don’t know how familiar he is with our insurgency but as he admits he has been here for the first time and he stayed here for the last ten days. We have been fighting this insurgency for 39 years. I will not even claim expertise on the matter," he said.

Despite the adverse reports, Esperon said the AFP will remain steadfast in its mandate of neutralizing the enemies of the state.

"The AFP will steady. We have to defeat the enemy. That’s the way to go," Esperon said. -With Jaime Laude, AFP, AP