3 ex-reb PDL among

amnesty applicants

TAGBILARAN CITY, Bohol (PIA)—Three persons deprived of liberty (PDL) due to participation in the armed revolution and who have surrendered to authorities are applying for amnesty, says a source from the Local Amnesty Board (LAB) in Bohol.

Another three PDLs, represented by human rights activists, accordingly refused to avail of the chance to be cleared of all criminal liabilities while actively working in the underground movement, reports Jail Inspector Tomas Diaz Jr., at the recent third quarter meeting of the Enhanced Local Integration Program Task Force at the Panda Tea Garden and Suites.

Diaz, who is the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology highest officials in Bohol and who supervises the Bohol District Jail added that the six are now in detention facilities in Bohol, awaiting for disposition of their cases in the courts.

Charra Nicole Alinob, who performs the secretariat duties of the National Amnesty Commission-installed LAB in Bohol, also said the three PDLs are part of the 88 applications for amnesty, since the LAB started its operationalization in March.

This as President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., issued Proclamation 404 granting amnesty to former Communist Party of the Philippines-New People’s Army-National Democratic Front (CPP-NPA-NDF) members who have committed crimes punishable under the Revised Penal Code and Special Penal laws in furtherance of their political beliefs.

Granted to former CPP-NPA-NDF members and their front organizations, the amnesty is for those who committed crimes, including rebellion or insurrection; conspiracy and proposal to commit rebellion or insurrection; disloyalty of public officers or employees; inciting to rebellion or insurrection; sedition; conspiracy to commit sedition and inciting to sedition as well as a host of other crimes in the pursuit of political belief.

And of the 88 applicants, 67 applications are in the state of being verified, a step that brings the application to the archives of the Philippine National Police, Armed Forces of the Philippines, Department of Justice and National Bureau of Investigation and the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group for matching with filed cases affixed to the applicants, for proper action, explains Alinob, who came to the Kapihan sa PIA with co-secretariat worker Ritzel Dagamac.

Amnesty is a general pardon for offenses against a government, often for a group, while pardon is a release from punishment for a specific individual's offense.

Not all cases are eligible for amnesty, Alinob said adding that cases submitted for amnesty are those who, while working with the armed revolution, have surrendered and taken the oath of allegiance to the government.

The recent amnesty also applies to

The recent offer for amnesty does not apply to those who have not surrendered, also shared Ending Local Communist Armed Conflict Provincial Task Force Coordinator Romeo Teruel.

The application also triggers the possible release of safe conduct passes, so the surrendering applicant individual can freely walk around without fear of getting arrested for the crimes tagged against him.

The NAC has been authorised to issue safe-conduct passes to amnesty applicants to protect them against arrests and prosecution for the crimes covered by the amnesty proclamation, suspend any more legal action against them and the rewards issued against the suspect’s capture.

In Bohol, since the declaration of insurgency-free status, hundreds of former rebels have surfaced, some of them with warrants of arrests for a criminal offenses, while some other warrants bear aliases, which should be affixed to the individual who was in the underground movement and not under the assumed name.

Here, the verification often snags, with the LAB secretariat going into the records and checking every application if there are matching cases against them, according to the secretariat.

But even then, with the applications getting verified by the police, army, DOJ and the NBI, LAB secretariat hopes that before the year ends, some beneficiaries can already be issued amnesty. (PIABohol)

AMNESTY APPLICANTS. Of the 6 former rebel detainees currently in detention, 3 are amnesty applicants while the rest, represented by rights groups allegedly refused to get the chance to be freed from their criminal suits tagged for being members of the underground movement, says jail inspector Tomas Diaz Jr. (PIABohol).