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UA Date : 6 November 2002

 

UA Title:                  Violent Dispersal and Police Brutality

at the picketline of JACLiner

 

I.  Case:                 Violent Dispersal of Picket Line, Physical Assault and Arbitrary Arrest

 

II. Victim/s:             Noel Dalogdog

·         29 years old, married, with 3 children

·         bus conductor of JACLiner Bus Lines

·         member JACLiner Employees Labor Union (JLEU)

 

Bernabe Tusi

·         49 years old, married, with 9 children

·         bus conductor of JACLiner Bus Lines

·         member JACLiner Employees Labor Union (JLEU)

 

Benjie Eusebio

·         23 years old, single,

·         student, Lyceum of the Philippines

·         member, Anakbayan

 

III. Place of Incident: JACLiner Bus Station, Kamias, Quezon City

 

IV.  Date of Incident: 30 October 2002, 9:00AM

 

V.   Perpetrator/s:     elements of the Philippine National Police (PNP) from Station 10,

Quezon City

 

VI.  Account of Incident:

 

 

The bus drivers and conductors of JACLiner Bus Lines were demanding to have a dialogue with management after the bus company refused to have a Collective Bargaining Agreement with the union. The workers were protesting the arbitrary and illegal termination as well as the illegal suspension of their co-workers, non-remittance of their 13^th month pay, SSS contributions, and other unfair labor practices.

 

The JACLiner Bus Company is owned by Jaime Chua, plying the route of Manila to Quezon and Batangas provinces and vice-versa. It has 114 bus units and earns upto P1 Million daily.

 

This injustice led the 120 employees to the streets and put up pickets on all of the Bus stations nationwide on October 22, 2001. In Metro Manila, they had pickets at EDSA, Kamias, SM West, Quezon City and in their Pasay City stations.

 

But on October 30, 2002 the JACLiner management managed to acquire a Temporary Restraining Order from the courts, allowing them to disperse the said picketline.

 

At around 9:30 am that day, three (3) truckloads of policemen from the Central Police District (station 10) in Quezon City came. The workers barricaded their picket to protect themselves from the club and gun-wielding policemen.  A negotiation followed between the union leaders and the policemen. But the authorities had other things in mind and proceeded with the dispersal.

 

During the melee, the policemen took Noel Dalogdog, a bus conducter and union member of the JACLiner Employees Labor Union, while he was helping one of their supporters get away from the clutches of the police who wanted to take them to the station. Authorities, hit him with a club on his hand, kicked his legs, tied his wrists with handcuffs while he was pinned to the ground by the policemen then later on brought to the police station.

 

On the other hand, the policemen also took Benjie Eusebio, a student from the Lyceum of the Philippines. He was one of those who gave their support to the striking bus workers. He nearly managed to escape, but was discovered at another bus station adjacent to the JACLiner Bus station in Edsa, Kamias, Q.C. Benjie was discovered by a policeman, who poked a gun at his face and threatened him, “Subukan mo pang tumakbo, bubulagta ka na jan.” (“Try to run and you will find yourself on the ground.”).

 

Also arrested by the police was Edwin Tusi, another bus conducter and member of the employees union of JACLiner. All three were taken to the police station, where a Major Omega who was the leader of the dispersal unit was going to charge them with direct assault. According to the desk officer, Major Omega, suffered from a wound on his finger during the scuffle while they were dispersing the striking workers.

 

It took some time before the Quick Reaction Team (composed of volunteers from KARAPATAN, the Ecumenical Movement for Justice and Peace and the Center of Trade Union for Human Rights) sent to the police station was able to talk with Station Commander Col. Joey Napoleon. It was either he was still sleeping or went out of the station. When they were able to finally speak to him, he decided to convince Major Omega not to push through with the charge and allow the strikers to leave.

 

RECOMMENDED ACTION:

 

Send letters, emails or fax messages calling for:

 

1.      The immediate formation of an independent fact-finding and investigation team composed of representatives from human rights groups, the Church, local government, and the Commission on Human Rights that will look into the violent dispersal of the JACLiner Employees Labor Union picket, and police brutality of the elements of the Philippine National Police against Noel Dalogdog, Edwin Tusi and Benjie Eusebio. 

 

2.      The prosecution of the perpetrators of the crime of physical assault and arbitrary arrest as well as investigations of other atrocities committed not only by the Philippine National Police;

 

3.      The immediate and proper indemnification of the family/relatives of the victims; and

 

4.      The Philippine Government be reminded that it is a signatory of the Universal Declaration

      of Human Rights and that it is also a party to all the major Human Rights instruments, thus     

      it is bound to observe all of its provisions.

 

 

You may send your communications to:

 

H.E. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo

President of the Republic

Malacanang Palace,

 JP Laurel St., San Miguel

Manila Philippines

Voice: (+632) 564 1451 to 80

Fax: (+632) 742-1641 / 929-3968

Cell#: (+ 63) 919 898 4622 / (+63) 917 839 8462

E-mail: [email protected] / [email protected] / [email protected]

 

Hon. Eduardo R. Ermita

Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process

7F Agustin Building I

Emerald Avenue

Pasig City, Philippines

Voice: (+632) 636 0701 to 0766

Fax: (+632) 638 2216

Email: [email protected]

 

Hon. Angelo T. Reyes

Secretary, Department of National Defense

Camp Emilio Aguinaldo

E. de los Santos Avenue,

Quezon City, Philippines

Voice: (+632) 912-9281

Fax: (+632) 911 6213

Email:  [email protected]

 

Hon. Purificacion Valera Quisumbing

Chairperson, Commission on Human Rights

SAAC Bldg., UP Complex

Commonwealth Avenue

Diliman, Quezon City

Philippines

Fax: (+632) 926 6188

Email: [email protected]

 

 

Please send a copy of your email/mail/fax to the said government official to our address below.

 

URGENT ACTION Prepared by:

 

KARAPATAN (Alliance for the Advancement of People's Rights)-National Office

9B K-9 St., West Kamias Quezon City, Philippines

TeleFax: (+632) 926 7877

Emails: <[email protected]> / <[email protected]>

Website: www.karapatan.org