Women’s rights group Tanggol Bayi today joined human rights organizations led by Karapatan and the Samahan ng Ex-detainees Laban sa Detensyon at Aresto (SELDA) in calling for the release of all political prisoners via a presidential proclamation granting general, unconditional and omnibus amnesty.
Cristina Palabay, convenor of Tanggol Bayi, said such demand underscores the situation of the 335 political prisoners (as of February 2011), who were illegally arrested, tortured, detained and charged with common crimes, most of them under the Macapagal-Arroyo administration.
“Most of the political prisoners are human rights defenders, who have been very active and vocal in defending the political, economic and socio-cultural rights of the people. They were slapped with common crimes to hide the very nature of the rights violations against them – that they are being persecuted and their political actions repressed,” she explained.
Palabay said there are 30 women political prisoners among the 335 political prisoners including the following: Maria Luisa Purcray, a peace consultant in Northern Mindanao region, who is currently detained at the Butuan City Jail; Maricon Montajes, a 23-year old film student from the University of the Philippines-Diliman currently detained at the Batangas Provincial Jail; Moreta Alegre, a 64-year old farmer who was arrested for alleged murder charges in 2004, currently detained at the Correctional Institution for Women (CIW); and Rowena Quilop, administrative officer of Bacolod-based non-government service organization Center for People’s Resources and Services (CPRS) and a board director of Ma-ao Parish Multi-Purpose Cooperative Inc. (MPMPCI), who was arrested in March 3, 2011 and currently detained at the Negros Occidental Provincial Jail.
“The continued incarceration of these women human rights defenders impedes their work in pursuit of women’s human rights. We support the call for general, unconditional and omnibus amnesty as all fabricated charges against political prisoners should be dropped or dismissed and their immediate release should have no preconditions,” she concluded.
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