The soldiers detained for allegedly participating in three attempts to overthrow the Arroyo administration will have to admit their guilt before they could avail of amnesty, a Palace official said on Friday. When asked by GMANews.TV whether the amnesty being offered by the government requires an explicit admission of guilt, chief presidential chief legal counsel Eduardo de Mesa said "the application form does." A reliable source confirmed that the Department of National Defense (DND) has transmitted to the Palace for approval the implementing rules and regulations for the amnesty application. The DND will process the applications from over 300 military and police personnel and their supporters who stand to benefit from President Benigno "Noynoy" Aquino III's amnesty proclamation. The amnesty went into effect this month after it was approved by both chambers of Congress. The amnesty was first contained in Proclamation No. 50. However, as lawmakers questioned some of its provisions, it was revised and the amnesty is now covered by Proclamation No. 75. The individuals who may avail of the amnesty are those who participated in:
the 2003 Oakwood Mutiny; 2006 Marine Stand-off, and the 2007 Manila Peninsula siege. Proclamation No. 75 specifically states that it does not cover "rape, acts of torture, crimes against chastity, and other crimes committed for personal ends." Senator Trillanes One of the leaders of the 2003 Oakwood Mutiny was then Navy official and now senator Antonio Trillanes IV, whom a Makati court temporarily released on Monday night. He is currently under Senate custody. Trillanes had been detained after joining more than 300 soldiers in seizing Oakwood Premiere Hotel (now Ascott) in Makati City on July 27, 2003. At the time, they were demanding the resignation of former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo (incumbent Pampanga congresswoman), whom they accused of corruption. In the May 2007 elections, Trillanes was elected to the Senate as guest candidate for the opposition. He became the first Philippine senator to be elected while in detention. On November 29, 2007, Trillanes, Brig. Gen. Danilo Lim, Capt. Nicanor Faeldon and other Magdalo officials walked out of their trial and marched through the streets of Makati City, calling for the ouster of Arroyo. They then headed to The Peninsula Manila Hotel in Makati and seized its second floor. The siege ended when government troops forced their way into the hotel and arrested Trillanes and Lim. Faeldon eluded the authorities but eventually yielded to authorities in July this year. A Makati Court recently allowed Faeldon to post a P100,000 bail but he said he could not afford it. – with Mark Meruenas, VVP, GMANews.TV 
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