Activist Roxas a rebel, claims group linked to ‘Garci’ tapes

An anti-communist party-list group linked to the “Hello Garci controversy" is claiming that Filipina-American activist Melissa Roxas was a member of the New People’s Army (NPA) who was abducted not by the military but by her fellow communist rebels. Roxas, a member of the left-leaning Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (Bayan) in the US, said she was abducted and tortured in Tarlac province last May by armed men whom she later claimed to be members of the military. At a press conference in Quezon City on Saturday, Rep. Pastor Alcover Jr. of the party-list Alliance for Nationalism and Democracy (ANAD) presented pictures and video footage showing a woman undergoing an armed training in a forested area. He claimed this was Roxas at an NPA camp in Aurora province. Alcover said a woman who wanted to leave the NPA sent him the materials through courier early this month. He, however, did not identify the woman. “Sabi ng babae, na-save niya lang daw ito (the pictures and video footage). Nang makita niya sa media na na-kidnap daw si Melissa, chineck niya ‘yong video n’ya. Si Melissa Roxas pala ‘yon. (The woman said she saved the materials. She said that she checked the video when she learned from media that Melissa was kidnapped. That’s how she found out that it was Melissa Roxas)," said Alcover. Hello Garci ANAD, reportedly a pro-military party-list, was cited in the 2004 “Hello Garci" recordings that were linked to the alleged rigging of election results in favor of then presidential candidate Gloria Macapagal Arroyo. In the said recordings, a certain Ruben asked a man believed to be then elections commissioner Virgilio Garcillano if he could help ANAD and another party-list group supported by Mrs. Arroyo to get more votes in the May 2004 elections. During the press conference, Alcover also read excerpts of a letter from the woman who claimed that Roxas was called by her NPA comrades as “Ka Aya" during their training in Aurora. The woman also claimed in the letter that Roxas was abducted by her comrades because she wanted to leave the rebel group. “(A)ng kanyang pagbabalak na pagtiwalag na sa kilusan ang dahilan sa pagdukot sa kanya para lamang hindi matuloy ang plano niya sa pagbabagong-buhay (Her plan to leave the movement and to have a new life was the reason why she was abducted)," the woman said, according to Alcover. Alcover did not furnish media the copy of the entire letter. Being a former NPA member himself, Alcover said he believed that the rebel group was behind Roxas’ abduction. “Knowing their strategy, knowing their tactics, I am convinced na sila ang may pakana ng lahat ng ito (Knowing their strategy, knowing their tactics, I am convinced that it was their scheme)," he said. Stupid lies Roxas’ legal counsel dismissed the accusations against his client as “stupid lies." “How could you believe these people’s allegations? These two (Alcover and Palparan) are not credible persons," he said. BELOW IS THE VIDEO OF A WOMAN WHO ANAD CLAIMS IS MELISSA ROXAS
He claimed Roxas’ accusers were only waging a “proxy war of the AFP" against his client. Fernandez also said the video that Alcover presented did not prove anything. “A video is just a video. May flag ba ng NPA (Was there a flag of the NPA?)? If you look at it, there was nothing NPA about it, besides the ruggedness of the place. Even the guns, were they real guns? If they want to prove it, let them go to court," he said. Fernandez emphasized that the real issue was not about who Roxas was, but the ordeal that she went through at the hands of her abductors. Palparan backs up ANAD Retired Army general Jovito Palparan, Bantay party-list representative, who joined ANAD’s press conference on Saturday, supported Alcover’s claim that Roxas was an NPA member. Sa tingin namin, si Melissa ay naging biktima ng kanyang mga kasama nang hindi niya alam (We think that Melissa unknowingly became a victim of her comrades)," said Palparan, who was linked by militant organizations to alleged extrajudicial killings and abduction during his military service. Palparan challenged the government to conduct a separate investigation on Roxas' alleged involvement with the NPA because the nation's reputation and ties with the US were at stake. "Dapat lang si Melissa ay managot sa kanyang pagsama sa NPA. Dapat siya'y... makasuhan. Imbes na iiyak-iyak siya at magpropaganda siya laban sa atin, panagutan niya ang mga ginawa niya, (Melissa should be answerable for her ties with the NPA. She should be sued. She should pay for what she did instead of crying and spreading propaganda against us)," he said. Abduction is still the issue Bayan secretary-general Renato Reyes urged the detractors of Roxas to focus on her alleged abduction and torture. “The issue is still the abduction. Kung titimbangin, mas mabigat pa rin ang testimony ni Melissa (Roxas’ testimony has more weight) compared to any statement based on an anonymous letter," he said. In Malacañang, officials kept mum on Alcover and Palparan's accusations against Roxas. President Arroyo had already instructed government agencies to cooperate with the on-going investigation on Roxas’ case, according to Press Secretary Cerge Remonde. "Tingnan natin kung ano ang resulta ng investigation (Let’s wait for the result of the investigation)," Remonde said in a radio interview on Saturday. - ANDREO CALONZO, GMANews.TV