Fear in Palparan’s eyes at his arraignment

CITY OF MALOLOS, Philippines—There was fear in the eyes of the normally stoic Jovito Palparan Jr. as the retired Army major general, called “The Butcher” of political activists during the Arroyo administration, faced the Bulacan Regional Trial Court (RTC) on Monday.

Palparan, who appeared in court well-groomed, asked Judge Teodora Gonzales of the Bulacan RTC Branch 14 not to detain him at the Bulacan Provincial Jail, while he faces trial for kidnapping and serious illegal detention charges in connection with the 2006 disappearance of two University of the Philippines (UP) students.

“The threat is real and imminent. My enemies will be running after me. I really plead, your honor… not here in the provincial jail because the place is not safe for me,” Palparan said during his arraignment.

Shortly after the arraignment, one of the protesters staging a rally just outside the courthouse managed to hit Palparan on the head with a pole before the police pushed back the group.

Judge Gonzales entered a “not guilty” plea for Palparan, when the latter refused to enter a plea during the proceedings.

Gonzales also turned down Palparan’s petition to be placed in the custody of the National Bureau of Investigation, citing assurances made by administrators of the provincial jail that they could protect him.

But Palparan said, “People there at the Bulacan Provincial Jail are not prepared to protect and secure my life.”

“It is not a simple threat, your honor. You see, your honor, the [number of] people securing me? This proves how my life is threatened and there are people out there [who are] after me,” he added.

Outside the courthouse, about 100 activists and relatives of people allegedly abducted and tortured by the military, gathered to demand that Palparan be made to answer for human rights abuses during his military career.

Palparan, former commander of the Philippine Army’s 7th Infantry Division, was arrested in a house in Sta. Mesa, Manila, on Aug. 12, after more than two years in hiding.

Missing UP students

He is standing trial in connection with the disappearance of UP students Karen Empeño and Sherlyn Cadapan, who were last seen in Hagonoy town in Bulacan province in June 2006.

A commotion ensued when the activists saw Palparan being led to a side door of the RTC building that leads to the provincial jail entrance in the capitol compound at 11 a.m.

They stormed Palparan and the policemen and NBI personnel who were escorting him.

One of them managed to hit Palparan on the head with a pole before the police managed to push back the mob.

In the ensuing melee, Raffy Lerma, a senior photographer of Philippine Daily Inquirer, was dragged away by policemen, who mistook him for a protester.

Lerma was eventually released, when attention turned to the mothers of the missing students, who berated Palparan using a megaphone.

Day in court

The NBI convoy bearing Palparan arrived at the NBI office in Bulacan at past 6 a.m. Palparan stayed at the NBI office until past 9 a.m. when he was taken to the Bulacan RTC.

Narzal Mallares, Palparan’s counsel, told the court that his client would be in danger if he was jailed in Bulacan.

Gonzales ruled against Palparan’s petition, citing an NBI letter delivered to the court on Monday, which said the agency had no resources to sustain security for Palparan.

Warden assurance

The judge also cited a position paper, submitted on the same morning by Bulacan Provincial Jail warden Pepito Plamenco, who assured the court that he could protect Palparan.

Government prosecutors, as well as the lawyers representing the families of Empeño and Cadapan, also entered their objections to detaining Palparan at the NBI headquarters in Manila.

Edre Olalia, the families’ counsel and secretary general of the National Union of People’s Lawyers, said: “The Bulacan Provincial Jail is just a stone’s throw away [from the courthouse] while the NBI detention cell would entail [too much resources]…. Imagine the time, [money] and effort everyone will be exerting every time… Palparan will be required to attend a court hearing. NBI Manila is 42 km away from this court.”

At one point, Mallares tried to convince the court by citing special arrangements made to secure alleged pork scam mastermind Janet Lim-Napoles, and Senators Juan Ponce Enrile, Bong Revilla and Jinggoy Estrada in detention facilities that are far from courthouses.

Like Jesus Christ

“We should be kind to him (Palparan). Let us not forget that Jesus Christ was crucified by an unfair and unjust trial. Palparan is just like Jesus Christ if he will not be heard and our plea will not be favored. We beg this court, your honor, please, without transgressing the laws and this court,” Mallares said.

That statement immediately drew harsh words from Olalia.

Prosecutor Juan Pedro Navera also told the court that Justice Secretary Leila de Lima had made it clear that the agency would protect Palparan, but would not resort to special treatment in fulfilling that task.

AFP custody sought

Mallares asked the court to allow the Armed Forces of the Philippines to have custody of Palparan, in the same manner that it detained his coaccused, S/Sgt. Edgardo Osorio and Lt. Col. Felipe Anotado, who have undergone trial also in the RTC Branch 14 here.

A fourth officer accused of kidnapping the UP students, M/Sgt. Rizal Hilario, has yet to be arrested.

Navera objected, saying Palparan had become a civilian.

Gonzales, however, said Palparan must stay at the provincial jail while he is on trial.

“You should not be worried. The provincial warden had presented [his] position [paper that he] can protect the life and security of Palparan,” Gonzales said.

Before he was detained, Palparan asked the court to correct its records, by identifying him as “Jovito Palparan Jr.,” saying court records have long been referring to his father.

Gonzales has set Sept. 1 as the pretrial date for Palparan.

Concepcion Empeño, mother of Karen, was unhappy that Gonzales allowed Palparan to speak in court. “Why was he allowed to speak? He is a liar. He said he values his life? Why did he not value the lives of our missing daughters? His lawyer even compared him to Jesus Christ,” she asked.

“You now say you fear for your life now that you are in the hands of the court, but when you were alone you were not scared,” said Erlinda Cadapan, Sherlyn’s mother.

“Our daughters were hung by their legs so we want you (Palparan) to suffer the same fate,” she added.

The elder Cadapan was referring to an account presented in court by a witness about how the missing students were tortured by their abductors.

Empeño and Cadapan were believed to have been abducted by the military in Hagonoy, Bulacan, while conducting field work and research on the plight of poor farmers in the area.

A farmer named Manuel Merino had tried to stop the armed men from taking them, but he, too, was taken.

The court later upheld the testimony of Raymond Manalo, who claimed he was abducted by the military along with his brother in 2006, and was eventually detained and tortured together with Cadapan, Empeño and Merino in 2006 at Camp Tecson in San Miguel, Bulacan.

The military accused Cadapan, Empeño and Merino of being communist rebels. They are considered “desaparecidos” (victims of forced disappearance).

During the arraignment, the Empeño and Cadapan families were supported by various groups.

Outside the courthouse, around 50 farmworkers of Hacienda Luisita in Tarlac joined a rally to demand the conviction of Palparan. The rally participants were chanting, “Ikulong si Palparan; berdugo ng bayan (Jail Palaparan; the country’s butcher),” when they saw Palparan finally being brought out of the courthouse.–With reports from Tonette Orejas, Inquirer Central Luzon; Aries Joseph Hegina, INQUIRER.net; and Cynthia D. Balana in Manila

Originally posted: 12:56 pm | Monday, August 18th, 2014