Minor punks file child abuse against PNP 06-04-16

	NORDIS WEEKLY April 16, 2006
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Minor punks file child abuse against PNP
LA TRINIDAD, Benguet (Apr. 13) — They used to join their respective families during Semana Santa (Holy Week), but they are now denied being with their families as they languish in different jails in this province for alleged robbery with homicide and arson cases filed by the provincial Philippine National Police (PNP) all concocted against them. They are the 11 punks arrested by PNP in Bugias of this province. They went through various mental and physical tortures. Unknown to many, however, two of the 11 punks are minors. Frencess Ann Bernal, the youngest at 15, hails from Camupang, Marikina City of the National Capital Region (NCR). The other minor is Ray Lester Mendoza, 16 years old, from San Francisco, Makati City (NCR). The two minors think that the damage inflicted on their person, through the false accusations against them, can never be compensated by monetary considerations. Their experiences from their PNP tormentors continuously revisit them especially at night. On Monday, April 10, the lawyers of Frencess and Ray filed a third case against the Benguet PNP at the Provincial Prosecutors Office here for violating Republic Act 7610 or the Anti-child abuse law. The charged Benguet PNP officials are SSupt. Villamor Bumanglag, PSupt. Brent Madjaco, PSI Joseph Paulo Bayongasan, SPO1 Alyson Kalang-ad, PO2 Jonathan Pucya, PO2 Wendell B. Baglao, PO2 James M. Ayan Jr., and other unnamed military and Citizens Armed Forces Geographic Unit (CAFGU) members whom the two minors personally described in their complaints. All the said PNP officials, except SSupt. Bumanglag, are directly involved in the alleged arrest and torture of the 11 punks in Buguias before they were transferred to the Benguet provincial jail in La Trinidad after the PNP charged them in court. The two minors pointed out that the arrest made against them was done without warrant. “We were arrested and detained without valid reason,” they added. For nearly two months now since their arrest on February 14, they continuously languish in jail. Frencess is now detained at the Women’s Correctional at the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP), while Ray is at another youth jail both located at the La Trinidad District Jail. The other nine punks are detained at the Benguet Provincial Jail (BPJ). Various abuses The two minors lamented that they were subjected to various verbal and physical abuses, torture, and other forms of cruelty and emotional maltreatment. A young girl enjoying mountain hiking, Frencess claims that she accepted against her will her captors’ insistence that she was a member of the New People’s Army (NPA). “I did it (acceptance of NPA membership) to evade further serious injuries, even if it was not the truth,” she claims. In different sworn statements by the 11 punks, they condemned the torture they experienced. They were hit in different parts of their body, including their genitalia; threatened to be killed; ordered to kneel under the sun; drowned in water; suffocated in plastic bags; thrown in dug-outs the size of a human grave; made to stand nude at midnight while cold water was poured on them, among others. Bound by their common interests despite coming from different provinces, they headed for Sagada, Mountain Province last February 14. On the way, they were held by the PNP officials in their checkpoint in Bangao, Bugias, Benguet. Thereon they were forced to admit their involvement in a New Peoples Army raid in Cabiten, Mankayan on February 10. The PNP tagged Ray as Ka Petra who is the alleged NPA’s intelligence and investigation officer that raided Cabiten. Assisted by Baguio’s human rights lawyers, they are in legal battle to contest the false accusations against them, and hopefully their complaints would be in their favor to punish the erring PNP officials. Earlier they filed a criminal case against these officials for the violation of their human rights. Republic Act (RA) 7483 protects the person/s’ rights under custodial investigation. They also filed an administrative case against the said PNP officials at the regional office of the National Police Commission, and if found guilty, they would be dismissed from service. Regardless of the result of these cases, the youth punks proved through their experience that the PNP, the so-called protectors of the people, and the present administration can systematically violate the rights of the people. In fact, their PNP tormentors are in for a possible promotion. # Arthur L. Allad-iw for NORDIS Post your comments, reactions to this article
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	NORDIS WEEKLY April 16, 2006
Home \| To bottom	Previous \| Next
Minor punks file child abuse against PNP
LA TRINIDAD, Benguet (Apr. 13) — They used to join their respective families during Semana Santa (Holy Week), but they are now denied being with their families as they languish in different jails in this province for alleged robbery with homicide and arson cases filed by the provincial Philippine National Police (PNP) all concocted against them. They are the 11 punks arrested by PNP in Bugias of this province. They went through various mental and physical tortures. Unknown to many, however, two of the 11 punks are minors. Frencess Ann Bernal, the youngest at 15, hails from Camupang, Marikina City of the National Capital Region (NCR). The other minor is Ray Lester Mendoza, 16 years old, from San Francisco, Makati City (NCR). The two minors think that the damage inflicted on their person, through the false accusations against them, can never be compensated by monetary considerations. Their experiences from their PNP tormentors continuously revisit them especially at night. On Monday, April 10, the lawyers of Frencess and Ray filed a third case against the Benguet PNP at the Provincial Prosecutors Office here for violating Republic Act 7610 or the Anti-child abuse law. The charged Benguet PNP officials are SSupt. Villamor Bumanglag, PSupt. Brent Madjaco, PSI Joseph Paulo Bayongasan, SPO1 Alyson Kalang-ad, PO2 Jonathan Pucya, PO2 Wendell B. Baglao, PO2 James M. Ayan Jr., and other unnamed military and Citizens Armed Forces Geographic Unit (CAFGU) members whom the two minors personally described in their complaints. All the said PNP officials, except SSupt. Bumanglag, are directly involved in the alleged arrest and torture of the 11 punks in Buguias before they were transferred to the Benguet provincial jail in La Trinidad after the PNP charged them in court. The two minors pointed out that the arrest made against them was done without warrant. “We were arrested and detained without valid reason,” they added. For nearly two months now since their arrest on February 14, they continuously languish in jail. Frencess is now detained at the Women’s Correctional at the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP), while Ray is at another youth jail both located at the La Trinidad District Jail. The other nine punks are detained at the Benguet Provincial Jail (BPJ). Various abuses The two minors lamented that they were subjected to various verbal and physical abuses, torture, and other forms of cruelty and emotional maltreatment. A young girl enjoying mountain hiking, Frencess claims that she accepted against her will her captors’ insistence that she was a member of the New People’s Army (NPA). “I did it (acceptance of NPA membership) to evade further serious injuries, even if it was not the truth,” she claims. In different sworn statements by the 11 punks, they condemned the torture they experienced. They were hit in different parts of their body, including their genitalia; threatened to be killed; ordered to kneel under the sun; drowned in water; suffocated in plastic bags; thrown in dug-outs the size of a human grave; made to stand nude at midnight while cold water was poured on them, among others. Bound by their common interests despite coming from different provinces, they headed for Sagada, Mountain Province last February 14. On the way, they were held by the PNP officials in their checkpoint in Bangao, Bugias, Benguet. Thereon they were forced to admit their involvement in a New Peoples Army raid in Cabiten, Mankayan on February 10. The PNP tagged Ray as Ka Petra who is the alleged NPA’s intelligence and investigation officer that raided Cabiten. Assisted by Baguio’s human rights lawyers, they are in legal battle to contest the false accusations against them, and hopefully their complaints would be in their favor to punish the erring PNP officials. Earlier they filed a criminal case against these officials for the violation of their human rights. Republic Act (RA) 7483 protects the person/s’ rights under custodial investigation. They also filed an administrative case against the said PNP officials at the regional office of the National Police Commission, and if found guilty, they would be dismissed from service. Regardless of the result of these cases, the youth punks proved through their experience that the PNP, the so-called protectors of the people, and the present administration can systematically violate the rights of the people. In fact, their PNP tormentors are in for a possible promotion. # Arthur L. Allad-iw for NORDIS Post your comments, reactions to this article
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