In August last year, ten young activists were reported missing in Metro Manila. Six of them, namely, Jessica Sales, Modesto “Bong” Sison, Cristina Catalli, Rizalina Ilagan, Gerardo Faustino and Erwin de la Cruz were later verified to have been arrested on July 31, 1977 in Makati.
On August 17, 1977 the Bulletin Today carried a news item about an encounter that supposedly took place on Aug. 14 in Mauban, Quezon Province. The news item listed several first names as among those slain in the encounter.
On August 27, the bodies of Virgilio Silva and Salvador Panganiban, missing since August 8, were found in a ravine along the Tagatay road in Cavite City. The bodies bore torture marks.
On September 27, after tortuous search, the relatives of Bong Sison finally found and identified his body in a common grave in Camp Wilhelm, Lucena City. The military alleged that he was one of those slain in the Aug. 14 encounter in Mauban.
What had happened to these persons is called “salvaging”–military slang for summary execution.
“Salvaging” is not actually a new phenomenon in the Philippines. In the 1960’s, the term was already common use and simply meant “to kill”. Most victims then were criminal suspects, but with the imposition of Martial Law on September 21, 1972, political activists have also become victims of this extrajudicial death penalty.
The first publicized case was that of Liliosa Hilao, 21, a scholar at the Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila. Arrested at her home on April 1973, Liliosa died a few days later, while in the hands of her arrestors. The military officially explained her death as suicide by drinking muriatic acid.
More cases were later reported by the Association of Major Religious Superiors in the Philippines (AMRSP). Fortunato Bayotlang in Davai, Marsman Alvarez in Isabela and Santiago Arce are some of the well-documented cases.
In addition to these known deaths, there are other victims who are listed as missing persons–those who disappear and never show up again. Eugenio Flores and Johannes Barroso are two victims who were former UP students. They were arrested on June 30, 1975 in Cabanatuan City. With them were Nenita Evangelista-Luneta ans her two-year-old daughter. Last seen a week after their arrest at the PC Provincial Headquarters. They have not shown up in any regular detention center since. Repeated inquiries by relatives have all been in vain. The military insists all are at large.
As of this writing, there are more than 30 other missing persons in the list compiled by the Task Force Detainee (TFD), a task force of the AMRSP concerned with political detainees. This list includes only those names that have been reported to TFD. Most of these kidnapped victims, especially those who have been missing for over a year, are presumed to have been “salvaged”.
“Salvaging” incidents have also been reported in the provinces. Most of the victims are peasants. Many cases have been documented by the TFD in such places as Cagayan Valley, Central Luzon, Samar, Panay, Davao and Agusan. Many “salvaging” incidents have also been reported in the Muslim areas and these are now being documented by various civic and religious groups.
In most of these deaths, the military claims that they had been forced to shoot because the victims were trying to escape or were fighting back. However, subsequent investigations tend to indicate that most of the victims were actually unarmed peasants and were killed in cold-blood–a common occurrence during so-called counterinsurgency campaigns.
The frequency of these incidents has led to speculations that “salvaging” has become an unofficial government policy. At least, it is being winked at. The TFD asks whether it has become a new trend, and thinks “salvaging” has been resorted to in order to prevent torture from being publicized.
It is to be noted that torture has been made the main issue of various human rights groups in the years 1974 and 1977. To prevent embarrassing publicity, the political suspect is simple executed after being tortured instead of being placed in a detention center where, by simply being a political detainee, he can “embarrass” the government.
The case of Silva and Panganiban, whose bodies were allowed to be discovered, illustrates the kind of “salvaging” that is intended for terror effect, serving as a warning to other activists.
Upholding human rights is a continuous struggle that demands the people’s constant vigilance. In the face of this newer and graver threat to human rights, a more vigorous protest movement needs to be launched. “Salvaging” can and must be stopped.
There are already many civic and religious groups who have concerned themselves with human rights. Those interested may contact these various groups and offer what they can to defend human rights in the Philippines. ●
Published in print in the Collegian’s September 6, 1978 issue.
