Isafp: 'Jonas is not an enemy of the state'

The chief of the Intelligence Service of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (Isafp) chief denied on Friday that the intelligence unit has anything to do with the reported abduction of agriculturist Jonas Burgos, stressing that the missing activist "is not an enemy of the state." Speaking during the Commission on Human Rights (CHR) hearing regarding Burgos' disappearance, Major General Delfin Bangit said the AFP has no reason to kidnap Burgos. "The AFP is a very respectable institution... We have no reason to resort to that kind of tactic (kidnapping). We abide to the immediate law," Bangit said during a public inquiry at the CHR main office in Quezon City. “I can categorically tell you that insofar as Isafp is concerned, we have nothing to do with the abduction," Bangit added. The intelligence chief, at the same time, said his men are looking into so many possibilities on why the son of the late journalism icon Jose Burgos was abducted. “We are looking at so many possibilities considering the information that we have in our hands," Bangit said. “As of now, we have nothing to show yet linking any element of the AFP to the disappearance. We will continue to explore all possibilities if only to express our sincerest coordination," he added. However, Bangit clarified that he is not discounting the possible participation of the other units of the AFP on the disappearance of Burgos. “Frankly and honestly, we do not have the name of Jonas in our list. He is not an enemy of the state. He was never a target," Bangit said. “As of now, we are having a hard time getting correct information that will lead us into the whereabouts of Burgos, but we are hopeful that this will be solved," he added. He said Isafp submits its report to AFP chief Gen. Hermogenes Esperon on a weekly basis to inform him of the developments in the case of Burgos. After the hearing, Human Rights Commissioner Dominador Calamba II formally closed the public inquiry to study the evidence and testimonies presented before the CHR. Calamba has asked the CHR legal office to subpoena Lt. Col. Melquiades Feliciano, former commander of the 56th Infantry Battalion (IB), 7th Infantry Division in Norzagaray, Bulacan; and Army Lt. Col. Edison Caga of the 69th IB in Nueva Ecija for their statements regarding the abduction of Burgos. The CHR said it will be coming out with a resolution on the case probably 30 days after the submission of statements of Caja and Feliciano. The Isafp chief, in a letter to CHR Commissioner Dominador Calamba last June 7, earlier expressed his willingness to attend this time, after successively snubbing previous hearings set by the agency. Meanwhile, the mother of abducted agriculturist Jonas Joseph Burgos also arrived at the hearing of the CHR. Mrs Burgos took the witness stand during the first session and told reporters that the Isafp is just gathering information but still does not know the whereabouts of his son. "Di importante kung naniniwala ako o hindi. And importante, totoo ba yun? (It’s not important whether I believe them or not. What is important is if it is true)," Mrs Burgos said. “Walang dagdag na lead (there is no additional information). How long has it been? More than a month, more than six weeks? But now there is still no report. How can you believe that the best intelligence agency supposed to be of the Philippines can't even have additional information?" she asked. Burgos stood ground that her family is holding the 56th Infantry Battalion responsible for his disappearance “because the only evidence that we have leads to them (military)." Earlier in the hearing, Calamba has urged Mrs Burgos to testify before the fact finding mission and tell that the military is behind the disappearance of his son. Calamba said that in a closed door meeting with the Burgos family, and farmer organizations Alyansang Magbubukid ng Gitnang Luzon and Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas before the public inquiry Friday morning, Mrs Burgos pinpointed to the military as responsible for the disappearance of Jonas on April 28. “We will put on record the answers of Mrs Burgos, if you (Burgos camp) allow us just one or two questions to ask her. (Because) we’ll be using these things on record to come up with a resolution," Calamba said during the hearing. “I want to hear it here (hearing), why she said that the military is behind the disappearance. Then the military can rebut or comment based on that," he added. The commissioner said the camp of Mrs Burgos and the farmers’ groups have set a “popular belief" that the military is behind the disappearances and killings of members of progressive groups. “The popular belief that they have presented is something that they have to answer before this court," Calamba said. However, Ricardo Fernandez, counsel for Mrs Burgos, asked the CHR en banc to allow her to testify after the military takes the witness stand. “She (Mrs Burgos) is the mother. The inquiry I think is for the military to explain the circumstances of the disappearance of Jonas Burgos. And Mrs Burgos has the right to know what happened to her son," Fernandez explained. However, Calamba no longer asked Mrs Burgos to take the witness stand saying the representatives of farmers group have already “indicted" the military on the abduction of Jonas. “We are here to explain how the KMP works and how we help other farmers fight for their right to land, as well as share on how we also help in improving the lives and livelihood of peasants," KMP internal deputy secretary-general Willy Marbella in a statement said. “We hope that this investigation can help in finding Jonas and for the military to be compelled to surface him immediately because he has been missing for more than a month and a half now and we have not heard anything from him since. We hope that every government and concerned agencies will exert all they can to find Jonas and our other comrades," he added. Leaders of the militant Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas (KMP) also attended the hearing and gave their side on the matter. "We are here to explain how the KMP works and how we help in improving the lives and livelihood of peasants. We are also here to debunk the military's fantastic claim that Jonas was abducted by other groups other than the AFP itself," Ka Willy Marbella, internal deputy secretary of KMP, said. "We hope that this investigation can help in finding Jonas and for the military to be compelled to surface him immediately because he has been missing for more than a month and a half now and we have not heard anything from him since. We hope that every government and concerned agencies will exert all they can to find Jonas and our other comrades," he added. - GMANews.TV