Interior and Local Government Secretary Jesse Robredo. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO
MALOLOS, Bulacan—There is no shoot-to-kill order against fugitive retired Major General Jovito Palparan as the government wants him alive, Interior Secretary Jesse Robredo said here Thursday.
“I am not issuing a shoot-to-kill order against him. We want to bring him before the court so he can answer the charges filed against him,” Robredo said on the sidelines of a forum on Bulacan’s Seal of Good Governance and Housekeeping.
Palparan and three other soldiers are facing charges for kidnapping and serious illegal detention in connection with the the disappearance of University of the Philippines students Sherlyn Cadapan and Karen Empeño in 2006.
Robredo said those accusing the Armed Forces of coddling Palparan should help the government by sharing information. “They should identify the coddler,” he said.
The Army on Thursday said it would be in the best interest of Palparan to give himself up even as it denied allegations by an international rights abuse group that the military may be coddling the fugitive.
“We firmly believe that the best option for General Palparan is to voluntarily surrender and clear his name,” said Army spokesperson Major Harold Cabunoc in a statement.
Cabunoc denied the fears expressed by the New York-based Human Rights Watch (HRW) that the military was interfering in the civilian judicial process with regard to the case involving Palparan and his co-accused.
“The Army, as a professional organization, respects the rule of law and our justice system. We practice transparency and accountability in our organization,” Cabunoc said.
He pointed out that the Army had voluntarily surrendered two of Palparan’s co-accused,
Lt. Col. Felipe Anotado and Staff Sgt. Edgardo Osorio, when it learned that warrants for their arrest had been issued by a Malolos, Bulacan, judge.
“If anyone can give the names of these alleged Palparan coddlers, we will promptly impose disciplinary actions and let them face criminal cases that will be filed against them,” Cabunoc said.
On Wednesday, Elaine Pearson, the HRW deputy Asia director, said President Benigno Aquino III “should get the message to the military that the years of protecting Palparan for grievous abuses are over.”
“Officers and soldiers alike should be on notice that if they block civilian authorities in arresting Palparan, they too will face legal consequences,” Pearson said in a statement.
Palparan, who carries a P1 million bounty on his head, was last seen on Dec. 19, 2011 at the Diosdado Macapagal International Airport at the Clark Freeport apparently preparing to board a plane bound for Singapore but was prevented by immigration personnel.
Meanwhile, Cadapan’s mother, Erlinda, denounced the slow pace of the manhunt for Palparan, and accused the Aquino government of not putting enough effort into arresting the general.
Erlinda said the P1 million bounty put up for Palparan’s arrest was not enough.
“The Aquino government’s effort to arrest Palparan is not enough. Right now I believe the administration has exerted only 10 percent of its resources to search for Palparan,” she said. With a report from DJ Yap