Zamboanga del Sur News December 2012
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| Lapuyan Falls: The favorite haunt of the fair Subanen maidens of Sitio Baga and all its neighboring areas, usual meeting place with many a young country swain in some secluded cavern beneath the rocky forest lane. | |||
 Lakewood, Zamboanga del Sur, Philippines | |||
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Province of Zamboanga del Sur, Philippines
Abducted 6-year-old son of a businessman rescued
- Source: http://www.philstar.com/nation/2012/12/10/884435/abducted-6-year-old-son-businessman-rescued
- Monday, December 10, 2012 12:25 pm
- By Roel Pareño (philstar.com)
ZAMBOANGA CITY, Philippines - Police and military security forces rescued Sunday a six-year old son of a businessman abducted in Zamboanga del Sur and arrested four suspects, who reportedly wanted to bargain the victim with the money they lost from investment scam, officials said.
Police Regional director Chief Superintendent Napoleon Estilles said the victim was a son of a businessman in Barangay San Jose Aurora town.
Two of the suspects were identified as Amran Maruhom Pulao, 24, and Aiman Maruhom Ampatua, 39, both residents of Barangay Kirapan, Sultan Naga Dimaporo, Lanao del Norte. The names of the two others who were arrested hours later were not made available.
Investigation disclosed that the victim and his mother were riding on board a motorcycle when the suspects aboard on service van flagged them down about 7:30 a.m. Sunday in Aurora town.
Senior Superintendent Romeo Uy, Zamboanga del Sur provincial police commander, believed that the target of the abduction was supposed to be the mother.
He said one of the suspects pistol whipped the mother on the head but managed to run away and left her son. Nation ( Article MRec ), pagematch: 1, sectionmatch: 1
The suspects subsequently grabbed the boy and loaded him into the waiting getaway vehicle van that sped towards the Sultan Naga Dimaporo area.
However, alerted police from the Provincial Public Safety Company (PPSC) and 3rd Light Armor Company of the Philippine Army immediately launched pursuit operation, leading to the rescue of the victim almost three hours later and arrest of Pulao and Ampatua.
The two suspects, however, pointed to two other suspects the masterminds of the abduction.
Uy said succeeding follow-up operation led to the arrest of the two other suspects, who were placed under tactical interrogation.
The police official disclosed that the four suspects had allegedly been trying to exact payment of the money they lost as being “abay” (ride-on) to the victim’s father, who was allegedly an investor in a scam recently.
Police said suspects have been harassing Solon for payment of the money they lost.
However, the businessman turned down the suspects, saying that he was also a victim of the investment scam and that he lost more than P2-million, including the money of the suspects.
“Even if the boy was rescued, there was an attempted kidnapping because the suspects wanted to raise ransom in exchange for the money they lost from the victim’s father,” Uy said.
3 activists killed before Human Rights Day
- Source: http://bulatlat.com/main/2012/12/09/3-activists-killed-before-human-rights-day/
- Sunday, December 9, 2012
- By RONALYN V. OLEA (Bulatlat.com)
“Is this how Aquino wants to celebrate Human Rights Day, with more impunity towards our beleaguered environment defenders?”– Fr. Oliver Castor, spokesperson of Task Force-Justice for Environment Defenders
MANILA – One farmer and two environmental advocates have been killed in two separate incidents on December 7.
Rolando Quijano, a farmer and active member of Alliance of Farmers Union in Zamboanga Del Sur (AFUZS) was shot to death at around 12:00 noon last Friday at purok 4, Ocapan village, San Miguel town in the province of Zamboanga Del Sur by suspected elements of the 53rd Infantry Battalion – Philippine Army, according to initial data gathered by Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas (KMP). Antonio Flores, KMP spokesman, said: “Quijano’s relatives and colleagues believe his death was due to his active opposition to large-scale mining and illegal logging in Zamboanga Del Sur.” KMP said 53rd IBPA has built a military detachment inside the village.
On the same day at around 6 p.m., two anti-mining advocates– Cheryl Ananayo, a member of Didipio Earthsavers’ Multipurpose Association (Desama), and her cousin-in-law Randy Nabayay — were also killed by unidentified assailants in Didipio, Nueva Vizcaya.
According to initial data gathered by the Kalikasan People’s Network for the Environment (PNE), Ananayo was carrying her three-month-old baby and her four year-old child when the assassins attacked. Both children are unharmed. Desama is a people’s organization opposed to the ongoing implementation of the 17,626-hectare Didipio gold-copper project in Kasibu, Nueva Vizcaya owned by Australian large-scale miner OceanaGold Corporation. The Financial and Technical Assistance Agreement (FTAA) of Oceana Gold in Didipio commenced only this November.
“Oceana Gold’s crimes to the environment and the people started way before its commencement this last November, and it continues to grow,” Clemente Bautista, national coordinator of Kalikasan PNE. “As early as during its mine development stage, it has already caused massive siltation that led to the disappearance of aquatic species in some affected rivers. Its campaign of attrition towards the indigenous people’s communities included threats of bulldozing homes, actual demolition operations, and letting loose gunfire upon civilians. We can think of no other person or institution with a track record and motive.”
“The climate of impunity remains and it’s a blood-stained Human Rights Day for the Aquino administration,” Flores said.
Impunity
“It seems that the mining regime perpetrated by the Aquino government is not content with the death toll of environmental activists this year, now pegged at 15 cases in 2012 alone. Is this how Aquino wants to celebrate Human Rights Day, with more impunity towards our beleaguered environment defenders?” said Fr. Oliver Castor, spokesperson of Task Force-Justice for Environment Defenders (TF-JED).
“We cannot continue turning a blind eye on the killings of environmental advocates. We have seen how destructive large-scale logging and mining activities have resulted in the intensified disaster impacts of hazards such as the most recent Typhoon Pablo that hit Mindanao. If we allow this impunity towards the likes of Ananayo to continue, who will be left to ensure the integrity of the environment that nurtures and protects us?” Bautista said.
Meanwhile, KMP’s Flores noted that Quijano’s death occurred while 74 farmers and Lumad from Mindanao are here in Manila for Manilakbayan (Journey to Manila) to protest the unabated killings linked to the large-scale mining in the South.”
Aida Seiesa, secretary general of KMP-Southern Mindanao, expressed outrage over the killing of Quijano.
“While we are here calling on government agencies to stop the killings in Mindanao, state security forces killed one of our colleagues,” Seiesa said in Filipino in an interview with Bulatlat.com.
She said she and Quijano attended a Congressional inquiry on the spate of extrajudicial killings held in Davao City a few months ago. “We came face to face with the military higher-ups,” she said.
Oplan Bayanihan
The KMP attributed the killing of Quijano as part of the Aquino administration’s counter-insurgency operation plan Bayanihan.
“Oplan Bayanihan enjoy the blessings of the haciendero president because it conceals the escalating terror and human rights abuses perpetrated by the military against farmers with the very same anti-peasant peace and development projects by the government,” Flores said.
According to the yearend report of Karapatan, of the 129 victims of extrajudicial killings since July 2010 to October this year, 71 were peasants and 25 were indigenous peoples.
“Aquino’s human rights record is tainted by the blood of the Filipino peasantry,” Flores said. “We hold Aquino as commander-in-chief of the armed forces responsible for the death of Quijano and all other farmers killed under his administration.”
3rd syndicated estafa complaint filed vs Pagadian mayor
- Source: http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/318279/3rd-syndicated-estafa-complaint-filed-vs-pagadian-mayor
- By: Christine O. Avendaño
- Tuesday, December 4, 2012
A third syndicated estafa complaint was filed against Pagadian City Mayor
Pagadian City Mayor Samuel S. Co claimed of having P5 million investment to Aman Futures’ double-your- money investment scam but denied using Internal Revenue Allotment from the city as investment capital. Richel V.Umel/Inquirer Mindanao
and for the first time his city treasurer and employee for their alleged involvement in the P12-billion investment scam perpetrated by Aman Futures Group Philippines Inc.
Also charged in the latest string of complaints filed by the National Bureau of Investigation against those involved in the massive investment scam was a policeman who served as bodyguard of Aman Futures manager Fernando Luna.
These was contained in the three complaints that the NBI filed before the Department of Justice on Nov.26 and Nov.29 and Dec.3 where the complainants accused Aman executives and Co for duping them of about P53 million of their hard-earned money.
Meanwhile, the special panel tasked to prosecute the syndicated estafa cases against Aman executives has postponed its preliminary hearing Wednesday in Pagadian City because of bad weather caused by Typhoon “Pablo,” according to Prosecutor General Claro Arellano.
Arellano said that the special panel will proceed though with its Dec. 7 hearing in Cagayan de Oro City, this time on the investment scam perpetrated by the Rasuman group.
The DOJ had created the panels to step up the prosecution of people involved in recent investment scams in the country.
The latest complaint against Co, who was charged along with nine others, had as its complainant, a certain Zaalic U. Adiong, who claimed she was defrauded of her P3.2 million investment.
In the Dec. 3 complaint, the NBI said that Adiong claimed it was Pagadian City Treasurer Flornina Gerona who represented Co in accepting her investment for Aman. The receipts of Adiong’s investment was issued by Haide Sepada, an employee of the mayor who was posted in his home in Tiguma, Pagadian City.
“Further, when Aman collapsed, Mayor Samuel Co tried to amicably settle the complainant which even made the claim of the complainant stronger that Mayor Co was indeed involved in the operation of Aman,” said the NBI complaint written by NBI Director Nonato Rojas who addressed it to PG Arellano.
Aside from Co, Gerona and Sepada, the NBI also recommended for prosecution Luna and other Aman executives–Manuel Amalilio, the top man of Aman who has fled to Malaysia; and five members of Aman’s board of directors–Leila Lim Gann, Eduard Lim, William Fuentes, Gazelle Rodriguez and Lurid Lopez.