Palparan to DOJ: Accusations not synonymous with guilt

Retired Army general Jovito Palparan has decried the lack of evidence in the allegations that he ordered the abduction of University of the Philippines student-activists Sherlyn Cadapan and Karen Empeño five years ago. In a counter-affidavit submitted to a Department of Justice (DOJ) panel on Tuesday, Palparan said the allegations against him do not ascertain his guilt because these are not backed by evidence. The counter-affidavit is in response to the criminal complaint filed against him by the mothers of the missing activists. The other respondents include retired and active military officials who supposedly had a hand in the abduction. "Do they [complainants] have competent and convincing evidence other than allegations which are mere conjectures and speculations? So far, there is none. Remember that accusations are not synonymous with guilt," said Palparan. Palparan headed the 7th Infantry Division, which supervises the 24th Infantry Battalion and the 56th Infantry Battalion. The former is assigned to Bataan and Zambales while the latter is assigned to Bulacan and Pampanga. In a complaint filed last May, the mothers of Cadapan and Empeño alleged that the military units carried out the abduction of their daughters five years ago. 'Professional soldier' But in his counter-affidavit, Palparan denied giving such orders. "I am a professional soldier very much aware of the consequences in running afoul with the law like the crimes paraded against me and my co-respondents in this case. Thus, I never allowed, encouraged, permitted, abetted, much less ordered the commission of such illegal acts to be committed by any of the officers and men under my command, or covered up in their commission, if there was any," Palparan said. Palparan's co-respondents include: