From: "KARAPATAN Public Information"
Subject: URGENT ACTION: 74-year old Bayan Muna-Misamis Oriental Provincial Chairperson gunned down in front of his wife and grandchildren
UA Date: 10 February 2007
UA Title: 74-year old Bayan Muna-Misamis Oriental Provincial Chairperson gunned down in front of his wife and grandchildren
UA Case: Summary Execution
Victim/s: Dalmacio "Tatay Daki" Gandinao
¡P 74 years old, married with 5 children
¡P Male
¡P A resident of Purok 7, Hanel, Poblacion Salay, Misamis Oriental, Philippines
¡P Provincial Chairperson, Bayan Muna "People First" Misamis Oriental, Philippines
¡P Chairperson, Misamis Oriental Farmers Association (MOFA)
¡P Barangay Chairman, "Village Chief" Barangay Matampa, Salay, Misamis Oriental 1982-1994
UA Case: Grave Threats
Victim/s: Josefina Gandinao
¡P 72 years old, married with 5 children
¡P Female
¡P A resident of Purok 7, Hanel, Poblacion Salay, Misamis Oriental, Philippines
¡P Wife of the victim
Eric Lopez
¡P 17 years old
¡P Male
¡P Grandson of the victim
KC Lopez
¡P 7 years old
¡P Female
¡P Granddaughter of the victim
Place of Incident: inside the victim's house, in Purok 2, Hanel, Poblacion Salay, Misamis, Oriental, Philippines
Date of Incident: 8 February 2007, at around 7:00 in the evening
Alleged Perpetrators: three unidentified men believed to be members of the military "death squad"
Account of Incident ¡V
At around 7:00 in the evening of February 8, 2007, Dalmacio "Tatay Daki" Gandinao together with his wife, Josefina and grandson, Eric was having dinner while his granddaughter, KC was sleeping in a bench nearby inside his house in Purok 7, Hanel, Poblacion Salay, Misamis Oriental, Philippines when an armed man suddenly barged into the house and fired four shots at the victim at close range, hitting his nape, back, forearm and hand, killing him instantly.
Trembling with fear, Josefina asked in Cebuano, Unsa man na? "What is this?"
The assailant aimed his gun at her and then at Eric as he told them in Tagalog, Dapa! "Drop on the floor" Eric dropped on the floor thinking that he will be next. But the assailant turned around and casually went out of the door.
Witnesses said that two other men were standing watch outside of the victim's house acting as look out.
A female neighbor who came across the three perpetrators as they were casually leaving the place of incident was told by one of them in Tagalog, WALA KANG NAKITA! "You did not see anything!"
The perpetrators boarded a dark colored van parked by the roadside near the Salay National High School and sped towards the National Highway. Teddy Gandinao, grandson of the victim together with his friends tried to run after the speeding van but it slowed down making them retreat in fear of being fired upon by the fleeing perpetrators.
Prior to the incident, a suspicious looking man was noticed around the neighborhood for three consecutive days.
Tatay Daki was the Chairperson of Misamis Oriental Farmers Association, an affiliate organization of the Kilusang Magbubukid sa Pilipinas "Peasant Movement of the Philippines" ¡V a nationwide federation of organizations of landless peasants, small farmers, farm workers, subsistence fisherfolk, peasant women, and rural youth. KMP is recognized as the most militant peasant federation in the Philippines and cited to among the most significant peasant movements in Asia.
Tatay Daki figured in many of the campaigns of MOFA against deployment of military forces in their area. He had actively resisted the putting up of military detachments in Salay due to known military atrocities that resulted in many human rights violations against civilians perpetrated by the military as part of their counter-insurgency campaign. MOFA has been repeatedly tagged by the military as a communist front organization.
He was at the forefront of the campaigns against state repression since the martial law years.
He was also the Provincial Chairperson of Bayan Muna "People First", a duly accredited political party that promotes the rights and welfare of the marginalized sectors of the country, i.e., workers, peasants, fisherfolk, indigenous peoples, urban poor, and other down-trodden by actively pushing urgent people's concerns in the halls of the Philippine Congress.
Bayan Muna as the number one party-list for two consecutive elections now ¡V 2001 and 2004 listed the most number of members killed. Tatay Daki was the 4th Bayan Muna victim of summary execution since the start of the election period and the 126th victim from 2001-2007.
RECOMMENDED ACTION:
Send letters, emails or fax messages calling for:
1. The immediate formation of an independent fact-finding and investigation team composed of representatives from human rights groups, the Church, local government, and the Commission on Human Rights that will look into the summary execution of Dalmacio "Tatay Daki" Gandinao and grave threats of Josefina Gandinao, Eric Lopez and KC Lopez.
2. The arrest and prosecution of the perpetrators of the crime/s of summary execution and grave threats.
3. The immediate and proper indemnification of the victims; and
4. The Philippine Government to be reminded that it is a signatory to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and that it is also a party to all the major Human Rights instruments, thus it is bound to observe all of these instruments' provisions.
You may send your communications to:
H.E. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo
President of the Republic
Malacanang Palace,
JP Laurel St., San Miguel
Manila Philippines
Voice: (+632) 564 1451 to 80
Fax: (+632) 742-1641 / 929-3968
Cell#: (+ 63) 919 898 4622 / (+63) 917 839 8462
E-mail: corres@op.gov.ph / opnet@ops.gov.ph
Jesus D. Dureza
Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process
*Office of the Peace Process
7th Floor Agustin Building I
Emerald Avenue
Pasig City 1605
Voice:+63 (2) 636 0701 to 066
Mobile:
Fax:+63 (2) 635 9579
osec@opapp.gov.ph
Gen. Hermogenes Ebdane, (Ret.)
Secretary, Department of National Defense
Room 301 DND Building, Camp Emilio Aguinaldo,
E. de los Santos Avenue
Quezon City
Voice:+63(2) 911-9281 / 911-0488
Fax:+63(2) 911 6213
osnd@philonline.com
Hon. Raul M. Gonzalez
Secretary, Department of Justice
Padre Faura St., Manila
Direct Line 521-8344; 5213721
Trunkline 523-84-81 loc.214
Fax: (+632) 521-1614
Email sad@doj.gov.ph
Hon. Purificacion V. Quisumbing
Chairperson, Commission on Human Rights
SAAC Bldg., UP Complex
Commonwealth Avenue
Diliman, Quezon City
Philippines
Fax: (+632) 929 0102
Email: drpvq@chr.gov.ph
Please send us a copy of your email/mail/fax to the said government official to our address below.
URGENT ACTION Prepared by:
KARAPATAN (Alliance for the Advancement of People's Rights)-National Office
2/F Erythrina Bldg.. Maaralin cor. Matatag Streets, Brgy. Central, Quezon City 1100 PHILIPPINES
Voice/Fax: (+632) 435 4146
Emails:
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