Militants: Police, military using ‘tokhang’ to go after activists

Photo by Julliane Love de Jesus/INQUIRER.net

Militants on Friday decried the government security forces’ use of “Oplan Tokhang,” or the antidrug program of the Philippine National Police, to hunt down activists in the countryside.

Rey Casambre, a National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP) consultant, said they monitored reports from different provinces that the police were arresting farmers they suspected as New People’s Army (NPA) members under the guise of Oplan Tokhang.

In a press conference in Quezon City, Casambre said the police were using the antidrug campaign to go after militant activists by including their names in the drug watch list.

Karapatan secretary general Cristina Palabay said they documented a case in San Jose del Monte, Bulacan where six farmers, who were active members of a peasant organization, were arrested, tortured and forced to admit that they were using drugs.

“Iligal silang inaresto at tinorture (They were illegally arrested and tortured). They were forced to admit na gumamit sila ng droga (that they were using drugs) and they were charged with offenses under the Comprehensive (Dangerous) Drugs Act (of 2002),” Palabay said.

Not only the police but also the military, according to Palabay, are using the knock-and-plead operation to identify suspected NPA members in several communities, particularly in Masbate, Camarines Sur, Legazpi, and Camarines Norte.

“We have monitored and documented cases that the AFP (Armed Forces of the Philippines) is using (Oplan) Tokhang as a justification to conduct a ‘census,’” she said.

The human rights group leader said military members were conducting a house-to-house operation to gather information on communist rebels.

“Tinatanong nila sinong nasa bahay, may kamaganak ba na NPA, nasaan ba mga NPA. Sinasabi nila, mag-census kami, tsaka na magtatanong may mga NPA ba dito (“They ask ‘who’s at home, do you have NPA relatives, where are the NPA?’ They say, ‘we’re doing a census here,’ then they will ask if there’s NPA here),” Palabay said.

“Under the guise of Tokhang, they are using this to terrorize communities,” she said.