Families of desaparecidos demanded that the Marcos Jr. surface the 14 victims of enforced disappearance under his regime and implement fully the Anti Enforced and Involuntary Disappearance Law.
Carrying shirts and clothes of their missing loved ones, families of the desaparecidos gathered at the Bantayog ng mga Bayani to once again urge the State to put an end to the practices of abduction and enforced disappearance.
“We gather here today to remember our loved ones who have been disappeared by the state,” said Dr. Edita Burgos, mother of Jonas Burgos, who was abducted in April 2007. “We demand the surfacing of the 1,894 documented victims of enforced disappearance since the regime of Marcos Sr. This serves as a stark reminder,” she added, “of the state’s failure to prevent this grave violation and to protect the human rights of its people.”
In December 2012, the government passed Republic Act No. 10353, which defined enforced or involuntary disappearance as a crime and penalizes it. The law recognizes the right of all people to human dignity and prohibits secret detention, solitary confinement, incommunicado, and other similar forms of detention. It also holds state forces, such as the PNP and AFP, responsible for providing written certification to families, inquiring persons, and search teams regarding the whereabouts of disappeared individuals.
This obligation of state forces has yet to be fulfilled. Recently, search teams who went to Bicol to look for James Jazmines and Felix Salaveria Jr. were met with indifference from police officers despite their awareness of the abductions. In spite of the evidence and leads available, the Tabaco City police has yet to investigate or help solve these cases. Even more frustrating is the fact that the police seems unaware of Republic Act 10353, said Linda Cadapan, mother of Sherlyn Cadapan, who disappeared with fellow activist Karen Empeño in June 2006.
CCTV footage obtained by Felix’s family clearly shows him being dragged and forcibly taken into a white van in broad daylight on August 28, 2024 in front of numerous witnesses. There are also witnesses who saw James Jazmines being abducted on the evening of August 23, 2024 with CCTV footage revealing vehicles of interest in the area at that time.
“We demand that Ferdinand Marcos Jr., his security adviser Gen. Eduardo Año, and all state forces under him open all military camps and declare and disclose the locations of secret detention centers, as mandated by law, to the families of victims. We urge them to reveal the whereabouts of the 14 victims of enforced disappearance in vain,” stated Bileth Batralo, brother of the disappeared Cesar Batralo.
To date, there have been 14 victims of enforced disappearances since Marcos Jr. took office on June 30, 2022. They are: Elgene Mungcal, Ma. Elena Pampoza, Renel delos Santos, Denald Laloy Mialen, Lyn Grace Martullinas, Dexter Capuyan, Gene Roz Jamil de Jesus, Deah Lopez, Mariano Jolongbayan, Lee Sudario, Norman Ortiz, William Lariosa, James Jazmines and Felix Salaveria Jr.
“We gather here today in search of our loved ones. Each year, we come together with heavy hearts but with undying hope that we will one day find them, and that candles will be lit and flowers offered at their resting places,” said Nanay Linda Cadapan.
“We gather here today to seek justice for the desaparecidos and their families, and to demand an end to the crime of enforced disappearances,” added Bileth Batralo.
At the venue, shirts of the desaparecidos were hung alongside the letters S U R F A C E. Families and friends shared poems, letters, and songs dedicated to their missing loved ones, and the program concluded with the offering of flowers.