‘Jump in the ocean,’ DOJ chief tells New York-based freedom house

Irked over their “meddling," justice secretary Raul Gonzalez told a watchdog group Thursday to jump in the Pacific Ocean for removing the Philippines from the list of free countries. Radio dzXL reported Thursday evening that Gonzalez made the remark after New York-based Freedom House “downgraded" the Philippines’ status as a free country. Earlier this week, Gonzalez told New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) to “jump in the river" after it told him to recall a “reminder" to journalists to steer clear of police and military operations in scenarios similar to the Nov. 29 standoff in Makati City. In the case of Freedom House, Gonzalez said it is not the place of any foreigner to tell a government what to do or what not to do. Besides, he said the Pacific Ocean is “much wider" than a river. On the other hand, radio dzBB reported that the Commission on Human Rights (CHR) advised Malacañang not to downplay the downgrade but to shape up in upholding human rights. CHR Metro Manila commissioner Wilhelm Soriano said the government must not take the downgrade lightly as it will have a negative impact on foreign-assisted projects. Soriano said the government must also properly implement the juvenile justice and anti-trafficking acts, and stop extra-judicial killings following the repeal of the death penalty. At Malacañang, presidential spokesman Ignacio Bunye urged the public to be “wary of private foreign groups that claim to be expert watchdogs on freedom and democracy." “Our people know best. We held elections last year and many potential candidates have been preparing for the 2010 elections even this early. These are examples of the vibrancy of our democracy," he said in a statement. “Let us be undaunted by outside forces that rely on propaganda rather than systematic and thorough research and consultations to underpin their statements," he added. Bunye said Freedom House should have at the very least sought the government’s side to verify information they have on the Philippines. If they had, he said, they would have known that the Philippines has “a free press, a pro-active Congress, and constitutional processes and principles that uphold human rights." “We don’t know who funds foreign groups such as Freedom House, nor were we told about their research procedures. What we do know and must always remember is that we Filipinos are the best experts on the Philippines," he said. “All the rest merely parachute in and out, while passing off hasty, unfounded conclusions as expert opinions or gospel truth," he added. Satur says rating downgrade shames Arroyo Also Thursday, Deputy Minority Leader and Bayan Muna Rep. Satur C. Ocampo described as another black eye for the Arroyo administration the Freedom House report downgrading the Philippines from a list of totally free countries to "partly free". "Freedom House's 2008 report removed any remaining pretensions of democracy under Ms Arroyo's seven-year rule. It is a big black eye on Ms Arroyo's record on human rights and good governance," said Ocampo. He said, "as long as Mrs Arroyo sanctions the counter-insurgency policy ‘Oplan Bantay Laya’ that targets civilians coupled with an increased tolerance of high-level corruption, her administration will continue to suffer international criticism and condemnation." "We challenge Mrs Arroyo to immediately rescind Oplan Bantay Laya and implement the recommendations of UN Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions Prof. Philip Alston," Ocampo said. The Bayan Muna lawmaker added that Freedom House's report strengthened the basis of human rights organization's demand for the Arroyo government's removal from the United Nation's Human Rights Council. - GMANews.TV