LGBT groups demand justice for Jennifer

MANILA, Philippines - Various groups and sectors yesterday called for swift justice for Jeffrey “Jennifer” Laude, a transgender Filipino allegedly killed by a US Marine inside a motel in Olongapo City over the weekend.

A group representing the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) community and militant groups held a protest rally at the US embassy demanding justice for Laude.

About 40 young activists waved red flags and yelled “US troops out now,” in a protest that ended with the burning of a mock American flag at the heavily secured US embassy compound along Roxas Blvd. Riot police stopped them from getting close to the heavily fortified seaside compound.

The militant labor group Partido ng Manggagawa (PM) called on the Philippine government to secure custody of the US soldier suspected in the killing.

The human rights group Karapatan said the killing of Laude is a consequence of lopsided military agreements between the US and the Philippine governments.

“We call for a thorough investigation and swift justice, and warn the government that we will remain vigilant against efforts to cover up the facts of the case and give special treatment to the suspected perpetrator who was identified as a United States soldier,” said Corky Hope Marañan, spokesperson of the group Kapederasyon.

“The killing of Jennifer is enraging and abominable, but we are alarmed even more so to know that the crime was allegedly triggered by the victim’s gender,” Marañan said.

The group EnGenderRights also mourned the death of Laude.

“We are calling for the immediate and effective investigation of the police on this hate crime against a transgender woman,” EnGenderRights executive director Clara Rita Padilla said.

She also urged the US government to cooperate with the Philippine authorities in holding the perpetrator accountable.

Laude, 26, was found naked and lifeless inside a bathroom of the Celzone Lodge last Saturday.

Based on the initial investigation of the Olongapo police, Laude’s neck was pressed down on the toilet seat, while her head was shoved into the toilet bowl.

Police are now looking at two motives behind the killing. One, the foreigner could have found out that Laude was a transgender. The other theory is that Laude could have tried to steal from the foreigner.

An article in the Marine Corps Times said the suspect, who is being held on board the USS Peleliu, belonged to the 2nd Battalion, 9th Marines based at Camp Lejeune in North Carolina.

The USS Peleliu is docked at the Subic Bay free port. The US trooper reportedly took part in the PHIBLEX joint military training exercise. The suspect and three other Marines are in the custody of US Navy officials since Sunday.

About 3,000 US Marines and Navy sailors concluded two weeks of military exercises with Filipino counterparts Friday and were to leave the Philippines this week.

US Pacific Command chief Adm. Samuel Locklear has ordered the grounding of US military vessels to keep them from leaving the Philippines until the investigation on the murder is completed.

Foreign Secretary Albert del Rosario said he was assured by Locklear, who was in Manila for security talks with Philippine defense officials, that the Peleliu and other Navy ships would stay in the Philippines pending an investigation into the killing.

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The thorny issue emerged amid a blossoming of security ties between the United States and the Philippines, which have both been vocal critics of China’s expansive territorial claims in the South China Sea. The longtime military allies signed a new accord in April that allows greater US military access to Philippine military camps across the country.

Karapatan secretary-general Cristina Palabay warned the issue of jurisdiction and custody of the American soldier involved in the killing may go the way of all previous cases, where criminal accountability of US soldiers in Philippine territory were exonerated under the defense agreements with the US.

“We call on the Filipino people to assert the country’s sovereignty and jurisdiction over the case, including custody and investigation of the perpetrator, and his prosecution. We demand justice and accountability. We call for the immediate junking of the VFA (Visiting Forces Agreement) and the EDCA (Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement), which are threats to the Filipino people’s liberty and security,” Karapatan said. – Rhodina Villanueva, Rey Galupo, Mayen Jaymalin, Evelyn Macairan, AP