Directors, artists call for filmmaker’s release

THE Directors’ Guild of the Philippines Inc. (DGPI) and other organizations of artists have called for the immediate release of filmmaker and professor Jade Castro, who they claimed was arbitrarily arrested on February 1, along with three others, for allegedly burning a modern jeepney in Catanauan, Quezon.

They urged the Philippine National Police (PNP) and the Department of Justice (DoJ) to conduct a thorough and transparent investigation into the matter.

In a statement issued over the weekend, the DGPI said that Castro declared his innocence and stated he was on vacation with friends when PNP operatives arrested them.

“Castro shared more disturbing information: the arrest was warrantless. Jade Castro is a vetted DGPI member and an important voice of the Philippine Independent Cinema. We stand by his innocence and testify to his good character. We urge clarity on the matter from the authorities involved and the immediate release of Jade Castro from detention,” the DGPI said.

The Philippine Center of International PEN (PEN Philippines) and Dakila also released separate statements calling for “an immediate, fair, and transparent investigation by Philippine authorities, trusting in our legal system to protect the rights of those in custody.”

Based on initial reports, the modern jeepney, owned by Gumaca Transport, was pulled over by four men wearing bonnets in Barangay Dahican, Catanauan, Quezon, on Wednesday night.

The suspects ordered the driver and the passengers to disembark and then hurled a Molotov bomb inside the vehicle.

The police launched an operation after receiving information that the suspects were staying at a resort in Barangay Butanyog in Mulanay town.