Bayan Muna member gunned down in Northern Samar

Bayan Muna member gunned down in Northern Samar

By Katherine Adraneda
The Philippine Star 01/20/2007

Manila--- A member of the party-list group Bayan Muna and chairperson of the Alliance of Concerned Teachers (ACT) in Northern Samar was gunned down late yesterday afternoon by a motorcycle-riding assassin in front of students at the University of Eastern Philippines in Catarman.

Professor Jose Maria Cui, also a former secretary general of human rights group Karapatan in the Eastern Visayas, died on the spot after being shot in the head and chest by an unidentified suspect outside the Engineering Building of the campus around 4:15 p.m.

The party-list’s information officer Anthony Ian Cruz said Bayan Muna president and Rep. Satur Ocampo is saddened by the incident, as Cui was a personal friend of his.

Bayan Muna condemned the latest attack against their organization.

Cruz noted that Cui is the 123rd Bayan Muna member killed since 2001 and the 820th activist killed since President Arroyo assumed office.

Meanwhile, Karapatan secretary general Marie Hilao-Enriquez likewise condemned the "dastardly act."

Enriquez said Cui was involved in the fact-finding missions on alleged human rights violations in the Visayas and was part of an "inter-faith movement" in the region.

"His was such a benign personality. He doesn’t lose his cool easily. He has long been involved in human rights work," Enriquez said of Cui.

She said they have received reports that Cui was No. 2 on the Order of Battle of the military in the Visayas.

Enriquez feared that the Cui slay may be a "sign" of resumed extra-judicial killings in the country, especially now that the ASEAN Summit in Cebu has already been concluded.

She also said the military has renewed its anti-insurgency campaign through Oplan Batay Laya 2.

"The killings should stop," Enriquez said. "These are senseless killings and we are losing good people… People who are not liars, cheats, nor thieves."

As this developed, the Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas (KMP) revealed an alleged "master plan" of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) that supposedly aims to neutralize progressive party-list groups and people’s organizations.

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KMP secretary-general Danilo Ramos said the AFP strategy against progressive organizations was based on the briefing paper of the AFP titled "Ending Four Decades of Communist Rebellion: RP Government’s Counter-insurgency Thrusts" dated May 5, 2006.

"This document was created with the purpose of destroying our party-list groups and our (people’s) organizations," Ramos said. "It is based on the wrong (and) malicious premise that we are front organizations of the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP), (a premise for) which, up till now the (Arroyo administration) has not shown any evidence to prove its validity."

Quoting the alleged AFP document, the KMP said the government would use a new National Internal Security Plan (NISP) consisting of five "offensives" and three "programs."

The KMP said these "offensives" are legal, military, political and economic offensives and strategic communications, while the "programs" would make use of demobilization, disarmament and reintegration (DDR), the Redefined Amnesty Program for Rebel Returnees and a human rights program.

"It is clear as daylight that the military is systematically being used for partisan politics, especially against ANAKPAWIS, Bayan Muna, the Gabriela Women’s Party and the opposition," Ramos said.

"This should immediately be stopped and we are now encouraging independent foreign observers to come here during the election season to see and expose to the world what is happening to Philippine democracy," he added.