Dear Friends,

As the campaign for the Philippine National Elections heats up, the human rights violations against partylist groups like Bayan Muna, Gabriela
Women's Party and ANAKPAWIS, among others participating in this endeavor are obviously intensifying.

We seek your urgent action on the following incident.

in solidarity,
KARAPATAN-National Office
Alliance for the Advancement of People's Rights
-----------------------------------------<

UA Date:         18 February 2004

UA title:           FARDEC* and ANAKPAWIS* partylist office in Bohol, Philippines raided; peasants and staff harassed by police and government  soldiers

UA case:         Harassment and Violation of Domicile

I. Victim/s:      

Staff members of Farmers Develop Center (FARDEC*) and peasants from Bohol, Philippines
A peasant organization established in 1989
Actively involved in the advocacy for genuine land reform and the protection of land rights.
Recently exposed the local government's support for the conversion of some 45,000 ha. covering 11 municipalities in Bohol for palm oil plantation
Office located at 117 New Capitol Site, Tagbilaran City, Bohol, Philippines

Organizers of ANAKPAWIS* Partylist
A partylist organization running in the current Philippine National
Elections seeking a post at the House of Representatives
Carries the campaign line of politics of the masses.
ANAKPAWIS is a Filipino word meaning "toiling masses".
Office located at 117 New Capitol Site, Tagbilaran City

II. Date of incident: 13-14 February 2004

III. Place of incident: 117 New Capitol Site, Tagbilaran City, Bohol, Philippines

IV. Perpetrators: 30 members of the combined forces of the 302nd Infantry Battalion of the Philippine Army and the Bohol Provincial Police led by P/Supt. Edgardo Ingking.

V. Summary of Incident:

Local and national news outfits reported on the alleged ambush of Governor Erico Aumentado in Tagbilaran City, Bohol, Philippines on Friday,
February 13, 2004. At least six hours after that incident, 30 combat-ready troops from the Provincial Police Headquarters and the 302nd
Infantry Battalion of the Philippine Army (IBPA) went to FARDEC or the Farmers Development Center at 117 New Capitol Site, Tagbilaran City, Bohol, Philippines. This same office also houses the party-list group ANAKPAWIS. They tried to forcibly enter the place but the staff and peasants who were in the office at that time firmly prevented the armed men from entering when they were not able to show a search warrant to the FARDEC
staff. However, those inside were practically "hostaged" by the soldiers and police by preventing them from leaving the premises when they tried
to go out and buy supper.

At that moment, some farmers from Ubay, Bohol arrived. They just came from the hospital for a check up. When they tried to get inside the
office, they were stopped, questioned and searched before being allowed to enter the place.

The armed men stayed and kept on insisting and attempting to enter the office until the next day. At 5:30 AM the following day, after securing
a search warrant from a Fiscal whom they misled into thinking that the apartment-office they wanted searched belonged to a certain Jamal, who
purportedly owned a firearm, they forcibly entered the office and ransacked the entire place. When they failed to find anything they had the
staff and peasants line up and took pictures of them.

Outside, other troops where conducting a black propaganda against the partylist group ANAKPAWIS. With the Politics of the Masses as its
platform, the partylist group is seeking a seat in Congress to ably represent peasants, workers and the urban poor in the ongoing campaign for the
Philippine National Elections in May 2004. The soldiers told the residents in the area not to vote for the group because they were enemies of
Governor Aumentado.

Officers and members of FARDEC and ANAKPAWIS suspect that the ambush on the Governor's life was "staged" to justify his actions against his
critics and political opponents. FARDEC, ANAKPAWIS and other peasant groups like HUMABOL have been aggressively involved in exposing the conversion of 45,000 hectares within the 11 municipalities of Bohol into a palm plantation by Palm Inc. The said project is fully supported by the
Governor.

If this plan pushes through this conversion will not only affect the food security of the province but the livelihood of peasants in the said
areas as well. The area coverage for the palm oil plantation (45,000ha) is bigger than what is actually being used now for rice production
(36,544 ha).

Active and intensified opposition to the plan has already pressured Palm, Inc. to reduce the 45,000 hectares for the plantation into 15,000
hectares. To date they have already converted 4,000 hectares of land in Trinidad, Ubay, Getafe and Danao in Bohol, Philippines.

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 harassment staff members and peasants of FARDEC as well
as the raid of their office;
2. The prosecution of the perpetrators of the crime of harassment and violation of domicile as well as investigations of other atrocities committed not only by the 302nd Infantry Battalion of the Philippine Army and the Bohol Provincial Police but by other units of both the Armed Forces of the Philippines and the Philippine National Police in different parts of the country as well.
3. The immediate and proper indemnification of the family/relatives of the victims; and
4. The Philippine Government to 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]

Hon. Teresita Deles
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. Eduardo R. Ermita
Secretary, Department of National Defense
Camp Emilio Aguinaldo
E. de los Santos Avenue,
Quezon City, Philippines
Voice: (+632) 912-9281
Fax: (+632) 911 6213

Hon. Purificacion Valera Quisumbing
Chairperson, Commission on Human Rights
SAAC Bldg., UP Complex
Commonwealth Avenue
Diliman, Quezon City
Philippines
Fax: (+632) 929 0102
Email: [email protected]