Two Filipinos acquitted in first case under anti-terror law

MANILA: A regional court in Zambales province in Central Luzon acquited for lack of evidence two members of the Aetas, an indigenous group, indicted for the first case of allegedly violating the country’s Anti-terrorism Law for killing a soldier in 2020.

In a related development, the Anti-terrorism Council declared the National Democratic Front (NDF), the political arm of communist rebels, as a terrorist organisation. Officials said the declaration would enable the government to seize the NDF assets.

The court in Olongapo City in Zambales acquited the accused, identified as Japer Gurung and Junior Ramos, both Aetas, for killing a soldier during a military operation against communist rebels in August 2020.

In its decision, the court granted the petition of the Public Atorney’s Office (PAO), the lawyers of the accused, for the demurrer to evidence, which argued that the evidence presented by the prosecution against their clients was weak.

The PAO lawyers pointed out that Gurung and Ramos were not positively identified by the soldiers as the killers, the concept of subjecting them to profiling was merely an aterthought and that the ownership of guns seized from them was doubful.

Earlier, Gurung and Ramos also claimed that while in detention following their arrest, the military subjected them to torture and indignities like forcing them to eat human waste, which forced them to admit the killing and that they were communist rebels.

Based on the petition, the court ruled: “Ater a careful examination of the records, the court holds that the prosecution failed to discharge its burden of proving the identities of the accused in perpetrating the crime of violating the Anti-terror Law. The case is thereby dismissed.”

This developed as the Anti-terrorism Council, which was set up by the controversial law, approved a resolution declaring the National Democratic Front (NDF), the political arm of communist rebels, as a “terrorist organisation.”