DOJ set to file raps vs SAF killers - Philippine Star

Justice Secretary Leila de Lima, Brig. Gen. Carlito Galvez Jr. of the Coordinating Committee on the Cessation of Hostilities, and Moro Islamic Liberation Front chief peace negotiator Mohagher Iqbal listen to questions by congressmen at the House hearing on the Mamasapano clash yesterday. STAR/Boy Santos

MANILA, Philippines - The Department of Justice (DOJ) will file this month criminal charges against members of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) and other persons involved in the Mamasapano incident that left 44 Special Action Force commandos and some civilians dead.

Justice Secretary Leila de Lima said a joint team of the National Bureau of Investigation and National Prosecution Service (NBI-NPS) is expected to submit its report on the Mamasapano incident on April 16.

The report will include recommended charges to be filed against a still undetermined number of suspects.

“Charges will be filed for sure, but I can’t guarantee at this moment that they will be filed all at the same time, depending on the state of evidence that we have right now,” De Lima told the House committees probing the Mamasapano incident.

The inquiry is being conducted by the committees on public order and safety, and peace, unity and reconciliation chaired by Reps. Jeffrey Ferrer of Negros Occidental and Jim Hataman-Salliman of Basilan, respectively.

De Lima said the NBI-NPS panel considered reports from the Senate, the Philippine National Police (PNP)’s Board of Inquiry and the International Monitoring Team as well as that of the MILF on the incident that occurred on Jan. 25.

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“But none of the reports provided witnesses on who actually participated. We have several witnesses who have seen first hand the firefight between the SAF forces and the BIAF, BIFF and the PAGs in the cornfields,” she said.

The justice chief was referring to Bangsamoro Islamic Armed Forces, the military wing of the MILF; the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters, the breakaway group of the MILF, and private armed groups.

She said the DOJ has in its custody a witness who could identify the members of the BIAF, BIFF and private armies who attacked the SAF commandos.

The commandos were out to arrest Malaysian bomb maker Julkifli bin Hir, alias Marwan, and his Filipino cohort Basit Usman.

Marwan was killed but Usman escaped. The raiders were ambushed as they were leaving the area.

“We have some names (of suspects) but we’re still finding out whether they’re from the MILF or BIFF or PAGs or whether they’re real names,” De Lima said.

She said the testimonies of the witnesses were validated by the physical inspection and evidence gathered by the forensic team of the NBI-NPS.

She did not say how many will be charged, adding the investigation will also determine the criminal liability of those who killed the civilians.

Reports said it was the commandos who fired at the hut where the civilian victims were found.

Two approaches

De Lima said the DOJ is studying two approaches in filing the charges: whether to use the Revised Penal Code in prosecuting the suspects for common crimes or availing of the provisions of the International Humanitarian Law (IHL).

“We’re studying the exact track that the prosecution will take – the common crimes or the IHL approach. Both have their advantages and disadvantages,” she said.

The first approach is the easiest to prosecute because it is simple, with the elements of the crimes known to the prosecution and the judge, she said.

She said taking the IHL track might affect the peace process with the MILF.

She said those from the MILF who may be charged would not be able to avail of the amnesty as provided by the proposed Bangsamoro Basic Law, as they are deemed to have committed “excesses.”

MILF chief negotiator Mohagher Iqbal said his group would invoke the ceasefire agreement in defending their members who may be charged by the DOJ.

The MILF earlier said its fighters merely acted in self-defense because the SAF operation was not coordinated with them.

Marwan killed 248

Marwan had killed at least 248 Filipinos and foreigners in several bomb attacks, according to PNP officer-in-charge Deputy Director General Leonardo Espina.

“At least 10 bombing incidents linked to Marwan killed 46 Filipinos and wounded more than 200 others in General Santos City, Cotabato City and Tacurong City between April 2002 and July 2013,” Espina told lawmakers yesterday.

He said a bombing incident attributed to Marwan in Bali, Indonesia resulted in the death of 202 individuals and wounded 209 others, including Australian and British tourists in 2002.

Espina was responding to a question from Pangasinan Rep. Rosemarie Arenas, who said some of the widows of the 44 commandos requested her to ask it.

Lawmakers including Rodolfo Albano III of Isabela, Elpidio Barzaga Jr. of Dasmariñas City in Cavite and Ben Evardone of Eastern Samar have said that the SAF mission was a success and that President Aquino was right in ordering SAF to catch Marwan and his henchmen.

Arenas asked the military officials about the delayed response to Napeñas’ requests for artillery fire support.

Salliman cautioned military and police officials and House members not to aggravate whatever animosity may exist between the PNP and AFP as an offshoot of the Mamasapano incident.

Arenas protested, saying: “We are not making them fight, but we want to find out the truth. There will be no closure to this incident for the SAF 44 families and the nation until we are able to ferret out the truth.”

She said the commandos’ relatives feel that the military did not provide timely and sufficient assistance to the SAF men. – Paolo Romero, Jess Diaz

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