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Ex K-pop star Jung Joon Young released after 5-year rape, spycam sentence
Jung was found guilty of rape on two occasions in 2016 and of filming himself having intercourse with other women without their knowledge and sharing the footage without their consent......»»
OSG asks SC to review, recall protection writs granted to green activists
The two environmental activists, who were abducted in September 2023, received an arrest warrant on Tuesday, facing charges of oral defamation......»»
Envi activists dismay over charges of grave oral defamation
“Prosecutor Arnold Magpantay dismissed that we were abducted by the military, that we were taken to safehouses, and was subjected to psychological torture to force us to ride the story coined by the agents of the NTF-ELCAC." The post Envi activists dismay over charges of grave oral defamation appeared first on Bulatlat......»»
Abducted activists denounce oral defamation charges vs them
Castro and Tamano said that the DOJ “ignored the fact that we were abducted by the military, taken to a safehouse, and subjected to psychological torture to coerce us into adopting the story concocted by an NTF-ELCAC agent.”.....»»
2 activists indicted for oral defamation
Charges of grave oral defamation have been recommended against two women activists, who were reported seized by alleged military men in Orion, Bataan last year......»»
UAE: Prominent Critics Face New Charges
(Beirut) - Emirati authorities have brought new charges against 87 defendants under its counterterrorism law in retaliation for forming an independent advocacy group in 2010, Human Rights Watch said today.Those recently charged include prominent activists and dissidents already serving prison sentences, including human rights defende.....»»
Political repression, trumped-up charges continue under Marcos Jr, groups say
Human rights advocates in Davao City commemorate the 75th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights on December 10 with a program calling for the end of political repression against activists, community workers, and indigenous peoples......»»
STOP THE REPRESSION
Activists in Davao City continue to raise the call to stop red-tagging and harassment of activists and community workers. Two Lumad students and two teachers were recently cleared from trumped up charges filed by the military. (Sean Jhayzeith Cortez/davaotoday.com).....»»
‘How quickly the dominoes fall,’ terror charges vs. ST youth activists dismissed
"The dominoes are falling one by one. After Hailey Pecayo's case was dismissed, we received news that Ken and Jasmin's case was dismissed too." The post ‘How quickly the dominoes fall,’ terror charges vs. ST youth activists dismissed appeared first on Bulatlat......»»
AFP files perjury raps vs 2 activists
The Armed Forces of the Philippines has filed perjury charges against two environmental activists who claimed they were kidnapped and coerced by the military to state that they surrendered to the government, Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro said yesterday......»»
European companies sold spyware to despots: media
European companies sold powerful spyware to authoritarian regimes which have used it against dissenters, a group of investigative media said Thursday. According to the probe -- by European Investigative Collaborations (EIC) and spearheaded by the French site Mediapart and Germany's Der Spiegel weekly -- European companies "supplied dictators cyber-surveillance tools for more than a decade", EIC said in a statement. "During the last decade the Western world has encouraged and applauded the digital tools that empower democracy activism in countries under authoritarian regimes," it said. "But at the same time European companies have supplied such authoritarian regimes the digital back doors to turn any digital device into powerful spying tools against dissenters," it said. The Predator Files investigation, named after the software, said the sellers benefited from "the passive complicity of many European governments". The investigation focused on the Intellexa Alliance, a group of companies through which EIC said Predator software had been supplied to authoritarian states. Intellaxa is run by former Israeli intelligence officials mostly based in Europe, and was targeted by US sanctions in July. "Activists, journalists and academics have been targeted, as have European and US officials," it said. The findings of the investigation run by 15 media are based on hundreds of confidential documents obtained by Mediapart and Der Spiegel and analyzed with the help of the Security Lab of Amnesty International, a human rights organization. Amnesty called Intellexa "a complex, morphing group of interconnected companies" and Predator "its highly invasive spyware". "Intellexa alliance's products have been found in at least 25 countries across Europe, Asia, the Middle East and Africa and have been used to undermine human rights, press freedom, and social movements across the globe," Amnesty said. "Highly invasive surveillance products are being traded on a near industrial scale and are free to operate in the shadows without oversight or any genuine accountability," it added. Mediapart said that a French company, Nexa, had sold Predator to "at least three autocracies: Egypt, Vietnam and Madagascar". Mediapart said the spyware had also been sold to Qatar, Congo Brazzaville, the United Arab Emirates and Pakistan "under the complacent eyes of the French secret services". Criminal charges against Nexa and four of its managers, brought in 2021 over spyware sales, were downgraded a year later, making their trial unlikely, legal sources told AFP. EIC said its members would publish further details over the coming days. The recent revelations follow a 2021 scandal around Pegasus, a spyware sold by Israeli company NSO Group, with several media reporting that it had been used to illegally spy on more than 50,000 individuals. The post European companies sold spyware to despots: media appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Brawner denies 2 activists tortured
Armed Forces of the Philippines chief, General Romeo Brawner Jr., on Wednesday denied the allegations of torture by the two young activists who claimed they were abducted by soldiers in Bataan province. Brawner clarified that environmentalists Jonila Castro and Jhed Tamano have undergone the military’s standard operating procedure for the rebel returnees. “We applied everything that is stipulated in our SOP when someone surrenders. We let them undergo medical examination the very first hour that they were brought to our custody when they surrendered,” Brawner said during the Senate deliberation on the proposed 2024 national budget of the Department of National Defense and its attached agencies. Brawner stood firm that Castro and Tamano “voluntarily surrendered” to the Philippine Army’s 70th Infantry Battalion in Plaridel, Bulacan, after going missing on 2 September. “When they surrendered. The first hour, we called for a doctor to do a physical examination on them. That’s why their statements that they were tied up with their other allegations of torture — are not true,” he said. In a government-sponsored press conference last week, Tamano and Castro made a surprising statement that they were “coerced to surrender” and “threatened” by the military. Senator Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa said Brawner’s assertion about the surrendering of Tamano and Castro could be backed by the statement of Public Attorney’s Office chief Persida Rueda-Acosta. “Everything that they said was properly debunked by PAO chief Acosta. In that alone, their claims were already destroyed,” Dela Rosa said. Perjury raps Meanwhile, Defense Chief Gilberto Teodoro Jr. said the government is preparing perjury charges against the two activists after they recanted their earlier statements, which were put through a “handwritten affidavit.” “There is a case preparation now, multi-agency case preparation for the filing of perjury charges against them. The sworn statements of the witnesses are being reviewed,” Teodoro said. The post Brawner denies 2 activists tortured appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Brawner denies military torture vs activists Tamano, Castro
Armed Forces of the Philippines chief Romeo Brawner Jr. on Wednesday denied the allegations of torture by the two young activists who claimed they were abducted by the soldiers in Bataan province. Brawner clarified that environmentalists, Jonila Castro and Jhed Tamano, have undergone the military’s standard operating procedure for the rebel returnees. “We applied everything that nandoon po sa ating SOP kapag meron pong nagsu-surrender In fact, ang ginawa po natin pina-medical examination po natin the first hour na nadala po sa ating custody when they surrendered (We applied everything that is stipulated in our SOP when someone surrenders. In fact, what we did was we let them undergo medical examination the very first hour that they were brought to our custody when they surrendered),” Brawner said during the deliberation of the Senate Committee on Finance on the proposed 2024 national budget of the Department of National Defense and its attached agencies. Brawner stood firm that Castro and Tamano had “voluntarily surrendered” to the Philippine Army’s Philippine Army’s 70th Infantry Battalion in Plaridel, Bulacan after going missing for weeks. “When they surrendered. The first hour, we called for a doctor to do a physical examination on them. That’s why, their statements that they were tied up with their other allegations of torture—are not really true,” the AFP chief stressed. In a government-sponsored press conference last week, Tamano and Castro said they were “coerced to surrender” and “threatened” by the military. Senator Ronald “Bato” Dela Rosa said Brawner’s assertion about the surrendering of Tamano and Castro could be backed by the statement of Public Attorney's Office chief Persida Rueda-Acosta. “Everything that they said was properly debunked by PAO chief Acosta. Wala talaga, sirang-sira sila doon (In that alone, their claims were already destroyed),” said Dela Rosa. Meanwhile, Defense Chief Gilberto Teodoro Jr. noted that the government is preparing perjury charges against the two activists after they recanted their earlier statements which were put through a “handwritten affidavit.” "There is a case preparation now, multi-agency case preparation for the filing of perjury charges against them. The sworn statements of the witnesses are being reviewed,” said Teodoro. The post Brawner denies military torture vs activists Tamano, Castro appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Perjury raps vs 2 activists underway
Perjury charges are now being prepared against the two environmentalists who recanted their “handwritten affidavit” stating they have “voluntarily surrendered” to the military and declared that soldiers abducted them after they went missing. During the deliberation of the Senate Committee on Finance on 2024 proposed P229.9-billion budget of the Department of National Defense and its attached agencies, Senator Ronald “Bato” Dela Rosa asked on the case update of Jhed Tamano and Jonila Castro who earlier retracted what they said in their affidavit. “May case preparation ngayon, inter-agency case preparation for the filing of perjury charges sa kanila. Nire-review lang ang mga sworn statements ng mga testigo (There is a case preparation now, multi-agency case preparation for the filing of perjury charges against them. The sworn statements of the witnesses are being reviewed),” Teodoro told Dela Rosa. In a previous press conference organized by the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict, Tamano and Castor denied that they surrendered to the Philippine Army’s 70th Infantry Battalion. Philippine Army chief LtGen. Roy Galido earlier admitted that the two young activists had tricked the military, contrary to their earlier statements sworn before the Public Attorney's Office. "We felt betrayed that's why we will file the necessary case, to use our laws, just like when you are also betrayed when your clients are betrayed, they file a case against you, so we just have to follow the rule of law in our country," Galido said. Meanwhile, Dela Rosa urged the DND to push through with the filing of perjury charges against Tamano and Castro. "We should do that. I am encouraging you. Grabe 'yung maka-kaliwa, grabe maka-jump sa bandwagon nung epekto na 'yun. Talagang all-out sila. Dapat tayo rin, sumagot din tayo. Parang lumalabas na para bang inaamin na lang natin na totoo ang sinasabi nila (The leftists are really jumping on the bandwagon following their retraction. They are really all-out. We must answer that. It seems like we are just admitting that what they are saying is true),” said Dela Rosa. The senator said the security forces should be aggressive in their actions against propaganda of the communist-leaning parties. Teodoro noted that the intelligence information on the two activists is liable. “Your honor, talagang sigurado po ako sa ebidensya dito (I’m really sure about the evidences),” said Teodoro, noting that the recantation of the two activists is just part of the dramas being perpetrated by the left-leaning organizations. ‘Lesson learned: Be wary’ Dela Rosa also warned the Armed Forces of the Philippines chief General Romeo Brawner Jr. to be wary of entertaining communist surrenderers. “Lessons learned, General Brawner. Ingat kayo kasi pwede kayong saksakin sa likuran niyan (Just be careful because they can stab your back),” he said. "Masyado tayong mabait, masyado na tayong gentleman. Masyado tayong mapagbigay to the point na 'yun pala, nilalason na pala tayo sa sarili nating tubig (We are too kind, we are too gentlemanly. We are too generous to the point that we are being poisoned in our own waters),” Dela Rosa added. On the other hand, Senator Juan Miguel Zubiri emphasized the need to provide sufficient funds for the NTF-ELCAC, to augment the military’s efforts on its Balik-Loob program. “We should help in their budget, we should continue providing funds for NTF-ELCAC, especially in barangay projects because that’s what winning hearts and minds. It has been very successful in Bukidnon and any other provinces,” he said. Dela Rosa supported Zubiri’s suggestion. However, the funds of the anti-insurgency task force are being lodged in the expenditure program of the National Security Council. The post Perjury raps vs 2 activists underway appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Military readying raps vs activists
The National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict and Philippine Army are preparing to file criminal charges against environmental activists Jonila Castro and Jhed Tamano......»»
NTF-ELCAC: Activists’ recantation ‘a mockery of state policy’
The National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict or the NTF-ELCAC Legal Cooperation Cluster on Thursday said the recantations made by environmental activists Jhed Tamano and Jonila Castro "is a mockery of state policy," as their sworn statements before a Public Attorney's Office lawyer is a "regularity" under the 1987 Constitution. In a virtual press briefing Atty. James Clifford Santos, Associate Solicitor of the Office of the Solicitor General and Spokesperson for NTF-ELCAC' Legal Cooperation Cluster, said the two women had admitted in their affidavits that they became members of the Communist Party of the Philippines and its armed group, the New People's Army. Santos said the two may face perjury charges for their recantation. "(Their) Immediate assertions of falsehood clearly has malice to humiliate the NTF-ELCAC," Santos said. Santos cited the paragraphs in Tamano and Castro's affidavit where they admitted to being members of NPA. He also enumerated paragraphs in their affidavits where they said they wanted to surrender and contacted a certain "Ate Bea" to bring them to authorities. Undersecretary Ernesto Torres Jr., Executive Director of the NTF-ELCAC Secretariat, said these statements, were also handwritten by the two women, and they swore to them as true before PAO Region 3 (Bulacan) and Commission on Human Rights (Region 3) representatives. "The mother and stepdad of Tamano were also there and a witness, Reynante Bautista, who if I am not mistaken is the Mayor of Angat Bulacan," Torres said. Torres also presented video footage of interviews of Tamano and Castro before they wrote their sworn statements and one where they attested to the truth of their statements after being asked by the PAO lawyer about it. "What happened during the press conference on September 19 is unusual. With tremendous amount of good faith (on the part of government) to help these two young ladies, we were betrayed. Even our legal system and the truth," Torres said. The post NTF-ELCAC: Activists’ recantation ‘a mockery of state policy’ appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Continuing the Fight for Jailed Rights Defenders in Belarus
Two years ago today, a group of international and Belarusian human rights organizations gathered to discuss how best to support our detained colleagues from the prominent Belarusian rights group Viasna.At the time, seven Viasna members were behind bars on trumped-up criminal charges in reprisal for their courageous human rights work in Belarus. Many other Viasna activists and their family members were designated.....»»
Red-tagged individuals create their own classification (1)
It is amusing to read about individuals or groups protesting about being tagged as New People’s Army or NPA supporters, or even communists themselves. At least one of them filed a civil suit for damages against two anchors of a program in SMNI for allegedly tagging him as a communist sympathizer and his mother as a closeted communist. Red-tagging has become a whipping boy of leftist organizations and their sympathizers. The dwindling number of left-leaning party-list representatives who survived the electoral debacle of their comrades have become the mouthpiece. They have been regularly and constantly attacking the government officials who described them as supporters of the communist rebels. This protesting sector of our society has described red-tagging as “the act of labeling individuals or groups as “communist fronts,” “communist terrorists,” or communist sympathizers.” They have likened such acts to “McCarthyism” in the 1950s in the United States. The American Heritage Dictionary defines McCarthyism as “1. The political practice of publicizing accusations of disloyalty or subversion with insufficient regard to evidence; and 2. The use of methods of investigation and accusation regarded as unfair, to suppress opposition.” McCarthyism is known as the “second Ref Scare” in the United States. It was an era of “political repression and persecution of left-wing individuals and a campaign spreading fear of alleged communist and Soviet influence on American institutions and Soviet espionage in the United States during the late 1940s through the 1950s.” Joseph McCarthy, a Wisconsin Senator, started what appeared to become a national witch-hunt in the United States in the late forties and early fifties. He rose to national prominence in the US after an alleged three-year undistinguishable stay in the US Senate, after delivering a speech in Congress where he claimed to have a list of “members of the communist party and members of a spy ring employed in the US State Department.” As a result of McCarty’s speech, congressional hearings were conducted by the U.S. House Committee on Un-American Activities that led to the imprisonment of 10 Hollywood screenwriters and directors. Likewise, hundreds of their colleagues in the movie industry were placed on the “blacklist.” The so-called human rights groups in the Philippines claim that red-tagging is often done without evidence. A human rights alliance group, Karapatan, slammed the NTF-ELCAC for gaining “notoriety in the red-tagging, harassing and intimidating political activists and other government critics and for instigating mass surrenders of civilians alleged to be supporters of the revolutionary movement.” Karapatan alleged, “Many of the victims of NTF-ELCAC’s red-tagging campaigns had ended up arrested and detained on trump-up charges, while others have been killed by vigilante groups or in armed encounters staged by the military.” There is a whale of a difference between the red-baiting in the United States during the McCarthyism period and the so called red-tagging in the Philippines. For one, those who have been red-tagged, if they feel they have been unjustly classified as communist supporters or secret members of the NPA, can always resort to civil suits for damages, just like one of them did. Unlike the late Senator McCarty, the perceived violators of their human rights are not immune from lawsuits. McCarty was immune from being sued when he red-tagged suspected members of the communist party because he enjoyed parliamentary immunity when he delivered the red-tagging speech. The claim that those red-tagged by government officials led to their deaths is just a claim. The human rights groups have not produced any proof of that. As to those arrested and jailed, it only means there was probable cause for the crimes they have been charged with — hence, the courts issued warrants for their arrest. As to the claim of trump-up charges, there have been instances where the courts have dismissed those criminal cases filed against them because the prosecution failed to produce the quantum of proof required by law in court. They can seek judicial redress by filing malicious criminal prosecution against those who made up the false charges plus damages. (To be continued) The post Red-tagged individuals create their own classification (1) appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Leftists weave yarns, scams
The desperation of left-wing groups to remain relevant has pushed them to resort to “elaborate hoaxes and fraudulent money-making schemes,” the National Security Council said on Saturday. NSC Assistant Director General Jonathan Malaya said the attempts to defraud came in the guise of manufactured claims against government security agencies. Earlier, the Philippine National Police reported that two young women involved in an anti-reclamation campaign in Manila Bay were missing, and this was linked to their advocacy. Malaya said Jhed Tamano and Jonila Castro had surrendered to the Philippine Army’s 70th Infantry Battalion in Doña Remedios Trinidad town in Bulacan on 12 September, contrary to leftist groups’ allegation that government security forces had abducted the two. “They had actually bolted their organization and sought the help of the authorities for their safe return home,” he said. Fake fundraising Malaya accused the leftist groups of soliciting funds from the public and making it appear that the security forces were irrelevant in protecting the general safety. “They collect money through GCash with the intent of using this to discredit and put the government in a bad light. They want the international community to believe that this country is a failed state,” Malaya said. “The Karapatan-led offensive included a shameless fundraising drive to collect money from the public purportedly to help locate the two young girls. It turned out, however, that the two had bolted their underground organization and went under the care of a friend,” he said. Karapatan is a militant group purportedly advocating for the protection of human rights. Malaya slammed Karapatan’s massive disinformation campaign, “Surface Jonila and Jed Network,” saying, “This was made out of manufactured threads of storylines using the Internet that even the media, the viewing public, and the government became victims of the elaborate deception.” Karapatan was among the first groups to sound the alarm after the two anti-reclamation activists went missing. With help from the Department of Justice, the NSC and PNP’s Cybercrime Group have started to build a case against the scammers from the leftist groups. “We will certainly investigate their possible liabilities in relation to the Revised Penal Code, anti-cybercrime law, and other special laws. We’re working now with the Department of Justice on the possible filing of charges against them,” Malaya said. Not an abduction Meanwhile, Police Capt. Carlito Buco of the Bataan Provincial Police Office said Tamano and Castro were in a safe house with their parents. Citing the police’s final investigation report, Buco said Tamano and Castro were not “abducted” and could not be declared “missing persons.” “The two young girls were staying at a Methodist church in Orion town as far back as 1 September and had been planning to leave their organization,” he said. The post Leftists weave yarns, scams appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Malaya warns vs. elaborate hoax, money scams by leftist group
The public should be vigilant against falling prey to “elaborate hoax and fraudulent money-making schemes” by the leftist groups, the National Security Council warned on Saturday. NSC Assistant-Director General, Undersecretary Jonathan Malaya, said that these fraud activities are carved out of manufactured claims against security agencies of the government. Malaya’s warning stemmed from the report of the Philippine National Police stating that two young women said to be involved in environmental campaigns around Manila Bay who were reported missing have surfaced in Bulacan. Malaya said Jhed Tamano and Jonila Castro reportedly surrendered to the Philippine Army’s 70th Infantry Battalion in Doña Remedios Trinidad town on September 12, contrary to the claims of the leftist groups the two were abducted by government security forces. “They had actually bolted their organization and sought the help of authorities for their safe return home,” he added. Malaya accused the leftist group of pooling financial resources from the people to make it appear that the government security forces are irrelevant. “Kumakalap po sila ng pera gaya nang sa GCash with the intent of using this to discredit and put government in a bad light. They want the international community to believe that this country is a failed state,” Malaya lamented. “The Karapatan-led offensive included a shameless fundraising drive to collect money from the public purportedly to help locate the two young girls. It turned out, however, that the two students bolted their underground organization and went under the care of a friend,” he added. Malaya then slammed the Karapatan’s massive disinformation campaign “Surface Jonila and Jed Network” saying, “These are made out of manufactured threads of storylines using the internet that even the media, the viewing public, and the government became victims of the elaborate deception.” Karapatan, a human rights organization, was one of the first to sound the alarm when the two anti-reclamation activists went missing. The NSC and PNP’s Cybercrime Group, through the help of the Department of Justice, have already started to build up a case against these scammers from the leftist groups. “We will certainly look into their possible legal liabilities in relation to the Revised Penal Code, anti-cybercrime law, and other special laws. We’re working now with the DoJ for the possible filing of charges against them,” Malaya said. Not an abduction Meanwhile, PCapt. Carlito Buco of the Bataan Provincial Police Office Tamano and Castro have already met their parents and currently staying in a safe house Citing the police’s final investigation report, Buco said Tamano and Castro were not “abducted” or cannot be declared “missing persons.” “The two young girls were staying at a Methodist church in Orion town as early as September 1 and had been planning to leave their organization,” he added. The post Malaya warns vs. elaborate hoax, money scams by leftist group appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»