This story
was taken from Bulatlat, the Philippines's alternative weekly
newsmagazine (www.bulatlat.com, www.bulatlat.net, www.bulatlat.org).
Vol. V, No. 16, May 29-june 4, 2005
HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH
Military Chaplains to Join Church Fact-Finding Mission The
increased incidence of political repression has prompted the United Church of
Christ in the Philippines (UCCP) to include military chaplains in its scheduled
fact-finding mission in the first week of June. The UCCP leaders hope that this
will serve as a deterrent to harassment and intimidation of the fact-finding
team. BY
AUBREY SC MAKILAN The military and church
people together on a mission? This is most likely to
happen as the United Church of Christ in the Philippines (UCCP) decided to
include military chaplains in a 15-person fact-finding mission from June 6 to 8
in Samar and Leyte provinces in the Eastern Visayas. Bishop Elmer M. Bolocon,
general-secretary of UCCP, said over the weekend they deemed this necessary in
the wake of killings and repression among church people. With six killed UCCP
members and pastors in the Eastern Visayas alone in recent past, the mission
aims to know the reasons behind the murders, particularly the recent victim Rev.
Edison Lapuz. Lapuz was killed by two
unidentified assassins on May 12. Church leaders, rights watchdogs and peace
advocates have linked the Eastern Visayas command under Maj. Gen. Jovito
Palparan to the wave of killings and other human rights violations in the
region. In an interview with
Bulatlat, Bolocon said that fact-finding teams are not spared from harassment
and intimidation. This can be gleaned, he said, from the recent experience of a
60-person team led by human rights group Tanggol Karapatan (Protect Rights) who
were held hostage in a Protestant church in Bagong Bayan, Roxas, Mindoro
Oriental (located south of Manila). “We hope (that with the
presence of UCCP chaplains who are in active service in the military), the team
will not be harassed,” said Bolocon. Trend According to Bolocon,
“Those (members of the UCCP) who were killed were also active in mass
organizations in their respective areas fighting for the poor.” He added that in
their preliminary investigations, the military was involved in the killings. Meanwhile, the East Asia
and Pacific Office of the Common Global Ministries stressed that the killings
show “a pattern of harassment and intimidation of progressive church and social
leaders whose prophetic voices have been committed to justice for the poor and
marginalized.” For his part, former Senate
President Jovito Salonga said that even during Martial Law, church people had
been targets of repression and assassinations. In a speech last May 24 at
the UCCP Shalom Center in Malate, Manila, Salonga added that the involvement of
government elements is not new. He cited the abduction of Fr. Rudy Romero on
July 11, 1985 in Cebu by armed people aboard a white car bearing a government
plate. Undying resolve Despite intensifying cases
of human rights violations against church people, many of them remain steadfast,
another pastor said. “Danger is part of our
calling,” Pastor Edwin Catungal of Bacoor, Cavite (located south of Manila) told
Bulatlat. “Being a prophet exposes a person to the many risks if he is
only true in his calling.” Catungal also said that he
will still join protests even with the killings and repression of church people
in mobilizations. But even seminarians are
already resolved in their chosen ministry. Henry Eduarte, 25, and Riza Ibarrola,
26, of the the Union Theological Seminary (UTS) emphasized their commitment to
the ministry. “When you enter the ministry, death is never apart from it,
especially when you are an advocate of the real meaning of truth, love and
peace,” Eduarte said in a separate interview. Both shared the same view
that “everywhere is risky not just for a pastor but for everyone else because
reality tells us there are many that still experience injustice.” Eduarte added that this
injustice could serve as a temptation for church people to leave the ministry.
He said, though, that this would only happen if “one becomes selfish, overcome
by power and wealth, and loses recognition of his fellow men which was contained
in the second great commandment.” “But this could be avoided
by living a simple life while still pursuing your goals in life,” he said. Ibarrola stressed that this
time of intensifying crisis poses a big challenge for them. “This is the time we
are needed the most so we should strive hard to stay,” she said. Bulatlat © 2004 Bulatlat
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6 UCCP pastors, members killed in Eastern Visayas
Bulatlat