MANILA, Philippines?The United Nations Human Rights Committee has said the Philippine government violated provisions in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) in the murder of activists Eden Marcellana and Eddie Gumanoy in 2003.

In a 12-page report, the UN committee said that the Philippine government violated the right of persons to effective remedies, the right to life of every person and the right to liberty and security.

?In the present case, though over five years have elapsed since the killings took place, the State party?s authorities have not indicted, prosecuted, or brought to justice anyone in connection with these events,? the report said.

?The committee notes that the State party?s prosecutorial authorities have, after a preliminary investigation, decided not to initiate criminal proceedings against one of the suspects due to lack of sufficient evidence,? it added.

?The committee has not been provided with any information, other than about initiatives at the policy level, as to whether any investigations were carried out to ascertain the responsibility of the other members of the armed group identified by the witnesses.?

The UN committee concluded that the ?absence of investigations to establish responsibility for the kidnapping and murder of the victims amounted to a denial of justice.?

?The State party must accordingly be held to be in breach of its obligation,? the report said.

The Committee, which is under the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, is the UN treaty body that monitors the compliance by states to the ICCPR.

Copies of the report were distributed to the media Monday by the human rights group Karapatan which represented Marcellana?s and Gumanoy?s kin in the complaint they filed with the UN committee in March 2006 after the Arroyo government?s alleged inaction on the double murder case.

Karapatan secretary general Marie Hilao-Enriquez said the committee?s Nov. 11 report was received by her group on Friday.

Enriquez said that the UN committee report would make a strong evidence on the alleged human rights violations committed by the government in the impeachment case against President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.

The deaths of Marcellana and Gumanoy were blamed by their colleagues on alleged henchmen of then Army Col. Jovito Palparan, who headed the 204th Army Infantry Brigade in Mindoro Oriental.

Marcellana was the former secretary general of Karapatan in Southern Tagalog, while Gumanoy was the former chair of Kasama TK, an organization of farmers.

The two were leading a fact-finding mission in Mindoro Oriental on the abduction of three people allegedly by the 204th IB when they were seized by armed men on April 21, 2003. They were found shot to death the following day.

The Department of Justice dismissed the kidnapping and murder complaints filed by Karapatan against the alleged suspects on the ground of insufficient evidence.

On May 22, 2007, Karapatan appealed the justice department?s decisions before the Office of the President. The appeal remains pending.

In response to Karapatan?s complaint with the UN Committee on Human Rights, the Philippine government said the group and the victims? kin had failed to establish ?how the State party has violated the Covenant.?