Burgos case raffled off to CA's 8th division

Acting upon the orders of the Supreme Court, the Court of Appeals on Wednesday raffled off the case of abducted agriculturist Jonas Burgos to its eighth division. Radio station dzBB reported that Associate Justice Rosalinda Asuncion Vicente will handle the Burgos case, which stemmed from the writ of habeas corpus petition filed by Jonas' mother Edita before the high bench. Vicente is now tasked to handle the proceedings on Friday, which was the date set by the Supreme Court for the military to produce Jonas. A report on the Associate Press said the writ of habeas corpus issued by the Supreme Court was dated July 16, or the opening of the high tribunal's two-day summit on extrajudicial killings and enforced disappearances. The Supreme Court order was made public Tuesday. Chief Justice Reynato Puno initiated the summit to gather inputs from various sectors to stop these incidents. Edita had asked magistrates to compel President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, Armed Forces chief Gen. Hermogenes Esperon Jr, military intelligence chief Major Gen. Delfin Bangit and four other officials to "produce" Jonas or "release him from arbitrary detention." The plate number of the van which figured in Jonas' abduction on April 28 has been traced to a vehicle impounded in an Army camp in Bulacan. For its part, the Philippine Army insisted Wednesday that Burgos is not in its custody. "If indeed Jonas Burgos is with the military, there is no reason for us not to bring him out. In the first place, the military organization has no policy or is it into business of abducting (people)," said Army spokesman Lt. Col. Ernesto Torres. - with a report from AP, GMANews.TV