Press Release
21 October 2011
Oplan Bayanihan implementors, PNoy government responsible for the killing of Fr. Tentorio – Karapatan-SMR
Davao City – “The revelation of a fellow Italian missionary priest on the inclusion of Fr. Fausto ‘Pops’ Tentorio, PIME, in the military’s Order of Battle list exposed the fact that extra-judicial killings and other forms of human rights violations continue to be committed with utter impunity under the Aquino government,” concluded Hanimay Suazo, Secretary General of Karapatan Southern Mindanao.
Suazo said this after Fr. Peter Geremia, a colleague of Fr. Tentorio, told the members of fact-finding mission team that both of them were included in the military’s Order of Battle list.
“Based on fact-finding mission report, the killing of Fr. Pops Tentorio happened during the time when the military under the 57th Infantry Battalion was conducting their Oplan Bayanihan activities,”
Presented in yesterday’s tribute to Fr. Tentorio, the Fact-Finding Report revealed that weeks before Fr. Tentorio was killed, daily surveillance was conducted by suspicious-looking men.
Suazo said surveillance activities on known leaders and supporters of legitimate organizations who are critical to anti-people and anti-environment policies, projects and programs is one of the activities of the government’s counter-insurgency program Oplan Bayanihan other than psychological warfare, deception and vilification of legitimate and progressive organizations as ‘enemies of the State’.
Suazo added that Fr. Tentorio had constantly been receiving threats because of his support to the lumads and farmers in their struggle for land rights and against ‘development aggression’ and militarization which made him target of harassment and vilification campaign from the military and paramilitary groups
The Karapatan leader stressed the circumstantial evidences that point to state security agents as primary suspects of the brutal killing of Fr. Tentorio.
According to the fact-finding report Fr. Tentorio was already targeted by ‘Baganis, a paramilitary group created by 73rd Infantry Battalion under the 10th Infantry Division, since 2003 when he almost lost his life.
“The killing of Fr. Tentorio in broad daylight shows that perpetrators still think that they can get away with their crime. The utter failure of the Aquino government to investigate and prosecute perpetrators of extra-judicial killings and other human rights violations fuel further violations committed by state agents. And we hold the Aquino government accountable for this,” ,” said Suazo
Based on Karapatan’s monitoring, Fr. Tentorio is the 54th victim of extra-judicial killings (EJK) and the first EJK victim from the Roman Catholic Church under the Aquino government.
Aquino’s continued mouthing slogans of “daang matuwid” and “respect for human rights and international humanitarian law” could no longer cover up the increasing number of human rights violations under his government, especially with the implementation of his version of counter-insurgency program Oplan Bayanihan.##
For reference:
Hanimay I. Suazo
Secretary General
KARAPATAN Southern Mindanao Region
Mobile number: 0929-401-4945
