Rights group prods Cayetano to file diplomatic protest vs US over ‘torture’ of Filipino activist

MANILA, Philippines — Rights group Karapatan dared Foreign Affairs Secretary Alan Peter Cayetano to file a diplomatic protest against the United States government over the supposed torture of a Moro human rights activist.

Karapatan said that Jerome Succor Aba, co-chairman of indigenous peoples group Sandugo, experienced psychological and physical torture for 28 hours in the hand of US authorities.

The 25-year-old rights and peace advocate, invited for a speaking tour by several church-based institutions in the US, was allegedly accused of being a terrorist combatant. He arrived in Manila on Friday after being barred from entering the US soil.

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“If Cayetano meant an ounce of truth in his pronouncements that the country should fully exercise its rights as a sovereign nation, he should uphold the rights of a Filipino citizen who suffered Guantanamo-style torture, among other violations, under the US government,” Karapatan Secretary General Cristina Palabay said.

Guantanamo-style torture refers to the “enhanced interrogation techniques” or harsh interrogation tactics used by US authorities in Guantanamo Bay.

Palabay then challenged the foreign affairs chief to file a diplomatic protest against the administration of US President Donald Trump for the “cruel and inhuman acts” of the US Department of Homeland Security and US Customs and Border Protection against Aba.

She maintained that Aba should have been accorded internationally-recognized civil and political rights, even in foreign soil.

“If it doesn’t raise its voice against the US on these dastardly acts, the Philippine government will once again reaffirm that it is a stooge to its imperialist master,” Palabay said.

The Karapatan secretary general added that the filing of a diplomatic protest against the US government would indicate if the Philippine government is really capable of exercising the country’s sovereignty or “if it is just rhetoric used to conveniently dismiss critics.”