of the Philippines the criminal justice system is - Article 2

On October 1, 2004, 327 farm-workers, including nine officers of ULWU,
were sacked by the HLI management. The efforts by the CATLU to
collectively bargain with the management regarding their demands for
wage increases and benefits drew to a stand still.
These issues prompted the protesters to stage a picket in front of the gate
of the Central Azucarera de Tarlac, which started on 6 November 2005.
As the tension grew, several attempts were made by the police and the
military to disperse the protesters, but these failed. The protesters stood
their ground until a violent confrontation between protesters and the
military and police forces broke out on 16 November 2004. Seven people
were killed and ten people were severely injured, while some 200 other
protesters required hospitalisation.
To date, the investigations into these killings have not led to any
conclusive results or any perpetrators being identified or prosecuted,
despite there being a large number of persons who witnessed the attacks.
[Hong Kong Mission for Human Rights & Peace in the Philippines,
“Extrajudicial killings & human rights abuses in the Philippines”,
article 2, vol. 5, no. 5, October 2006, p. 17]
Ricardo Uy:
War of words with army ends with bullets in the back
On 18 November 2005 at 11am Ricardo Uy (57), chairperson of
the Bayan Muna party in Sorsogon City, was shot dead inside
his Soledad Corral Uy Ricemill in Barangay Basud. Uy’s assistant
heard gunshots ring out and when he ran inside he saw a
gunman in sunglasses and wearing a hat had shot Uy in the
back. The gunman aimed at the assistant, but his gun was empty.
He calmly walked to a motorcycle parked close to the rice mill
and left.
At the time of his death, Uy was the radio anchor of a morning
program at dzRS Sorsogon radio. He was a hard-hitting critic of
the militarisation of the towns of Sorsogon and other policies of
the government that he considered anti-poor.
Since 2004, the military had been vilifying Uy as a communist
supporter and recruiter of the New People’s Army in their own
radio programmes on dzMS.
Ricardo Ramos: Yet another victim of Hacienda Luisita
On 25 October 2005 at around 3pm Ricardo Ramos arrived at a
bamboo hut about 50 metres from his house, with his wife and
six companions. Two soldiers attached to the 7th Infantry
Division, Philippine Army, later arrived nearby. The two,
Sgt. Castillo and Joshua de la Cruz were known to the villagers
because they often conducted foot patrols in the area. They asked
Jorge Gatus, a village security volunteer, whether they could
speak with Ramos, who was president of the Central Azucarera
de Tarlac Labor Union and one of the leaders of the Hacienda
Luisita workers, who in November 2004 had been attacked by
the police and military (see below). Gatus said that Ramos was
resting. The soldiers then left.
75
VICTIM: Ricardo Uy
INCIDENT: Killing
ALLEGED PERPETRATOR:
Unidentified gunman
DATE: 18 November 2005
AHRC UP-143-2005
76
VICTIM: Ricardo Ramos
INCIDENT: Killing
ALLEGED PERPETRATORS:
Unidentified gunman
DATE: 25 October 2005
AHRC UP-143-2005
article 2 • February 2007 Vol. 6, No. 1 81