Professional Documents
Culture Documents
29, 2012
NR # 2846
The commissions Forensic Center attended to 188 cases requiring independent medico-legal services including autopsies and exhumations, according to Rosales. The forensic cases include 31 incidents of torture and various allegations of maltreatment of suspects while in custody of the Police, Rosales said. Also among the high profile cases investigated in 2011 include the filling of Fr. Fausto Pops Tentorio, the Italian missionary who was known for advocating the interests of Lumads in Cotabato; the death of Erick Joseph Apura due to the hazing at the Philippine Merchant Marine Academy; the death of Nicanor Mariano and wounding of his brother, Norman, due to indiscriminate firing allegedly committed by the soldiers of the 56th Infantry Brigade; the ambush of the Scout Rangers of the Philippine Army in Sumilip, Basilan; and the arrest and torture of Abdulkhan Balinting Y Ajid, as suspected Abu Sayyaf member whose warrant of arrest contained a different name. Rosales said the CHR also contributed to the peaceful resolution of the 3-day hostage taking by five armed men from the Manobo tribe in Prosperidad, Agusan del Sur in April this year. At the start of the 2011, the CHR adopted its updated CHRP Strategic Plan for 2010-2015 which enunciates the focus areas for its human rights protection, promotion and policy advisory programs and services, Rosales stressed. The CHRs priority thrusts and directions include Intensifying Human Rights monitoring; nurturing a culture of human rights in Philippines society; institutional strengthening of the CHRP; strengthening the human rights mechanisms in the country; enhancing the human rights service delivery system and building alliances and partnerships at various levels. (30) dpt