Environmental activists Francisco “Eco” Dangla and Joxielle “Jak” Tiong were found safe on Wednesday, three days after they were reportedly abducted by suspected state forces.
A fact-finding team composed of progressive groups released a joint statement on Thursday, stating that the two activists were “no longer in the hands of their abductors, bruised but alive” and are now under the care of the Lingayen-Dagupan Archdiocese in Pangasinan.
“While they are still reeling from their harrowing ordeal, we hope that in due time, Eco and Jak will be able to fully recount the details of their abduction and subsequent release,” the statement read.
The two environmental defenders were reported to have been hauled and abducted by three armed masked men riding a sports utility vehicle at San Carlos City, Pangasinan on Sunday night, according to rights group Karapatan-Central Luzon.
Dangla and Tiong were on their way to attend Simbalo, a Lenten recollection in Lingayen-Dagupan Archdiocese. Both Dangla and Tiong are members of the ecology ministry of the church.
The case of Dangla and Tiong adds to the growing list of forced abductions, being the 22nd and 23rd victims under the Marcos administration.
The fact-finding mission, in a joint statement, called to surface victims of enforced disappearances and demanded an end to the continuing “pattern of attacks” against environmental defenders and activists.
Dangla and Tiong are both labor and environmental rights advocates, who led local campaigns against several environmental issues in Pangasinan, including the proposed black sand mining operations in Lingayen Gulf and nuclear project construction in Labrador.
“Their case bolsters our assertion that terrorist-tagging engenders grave human rights violations including enforced disappearances,” the joint statement added.
The Commission on Human Rights (CHR), in a statement condemning the abduction of Dangla and Tiong, noted that the two were victims of red-tagging before the incident.
The CHR has also urged the government to implement the Involuntary Disappearance Act to protect activists like Dangla and Tiong.
“We take this opportunity to remind everyone that all acts of red-tagging put the welfare of individuals at risk and may endanger their life, liberty, and security. It is, therefore, an outright violation of one’s human rights,” the CHR said in a statement on Wednesday.
A statement by San Carlos Bishop Gerardo Alminaza on Monday also called for a “rapid and comprehensive investigation to ensure the culprits are held accountable.”
Based on eyewitnesses' accounts, as reported by Karapatan, Dangla and Tiong were traveling on a tricycle until a 4x4 pickup truck overtook them around 8 p.m. on Sunday. Then, the armed men seized the tricycle driver’s cell phone and keys, after the activists were manhandled and forced into the vehicle.
The report added that the eyewitnesses were warned by the abductors and told them “wala kayong narinig at wala kayong nakita.”
In a similar incident in 2023, environmental activists Jonila Castro and Jhed Tamano were abducted by state forces in Bataan.
After the continuous denial of the state about the abduction, the military eventually surfaced the two activists whom they claimed were “rebel surrenderees.”
However, Castro and Tamano denied the claims of the military and revealed the details of their abduction and the torture that they experienced during a live press conference.
In the backdrop of the prevalence of human rights violations in the country, the CHR hopes for the state to uphold its mandate to protect the rights of Filipinos.
“We all hold the responsibility to foster a country that is conducive to the promotion and protection of the rights of all, and a large proportion of this lies on the need to put an end to the culture of impunity and to reinforce the wheels of justice,” CHR stated. ●
