Army defies court order to present Moneba

By Malu Cadeliña Manar/MindaNews/ 22 December 2005

KIDAPAWAN CITY – Despite the writ of habeas corpus issued last Wednesday by a local court here, the Army in North Cotabato is still holding Thomas ‘Bebot’ Moneba, an NGO worker in Koronadal City whom the military claimed is the secretary-general of the New People’s Army’s Front 74.

Judge Francis Palmones of the Regional Trial Court Branch 17 has ordered arresting officers to present Moneba in court and turn him over to the Philippine National Police (PNP).

But Army Col. Ruperto Pabustan, commander of the 602nd Infantry Brigade, told DXND they will hand over Moneba to proper authorities “in due time.”

Pabustan said Moneba was placed in an “undisclosed but safe area” and undergoing a “custodial debriefing.”

This debriefing, he stressed, will take days or weeks.

He, however, denied reports that Moneba was tortured by arresting officers. Moneba was arrested Tuesday afternoon from his residence.

“No, it’s not true. We don’t do that. Moneba is in good health and very cooperative to us,” he said.

During the “debriefing,” Pabustan said Moneba admitted his position as secretary-general of the NPA’s Front 74 operating in Tulunan and M’lang in North Cotabato and Columbio in Sultan Kudarat.

Moneba has been reported as a community organizer of an agri-based NGO in Koronadal City but the NGO has yet to be named. Other reports say he was doing freelance consultancy as an animal science graduate.

Moneba was arrested on the basis of an arrest warrant issued in June 2005 for multiple murder and multiple frustrated murder charges in Makilala, North Cotabato in 2003. An earlier report said the arrest warrant was in the name of Robert Moneva.

Moneba was also accused of having been behind the landmine explosion in a village in Tulunan that killed four soldiers and wounded 10 others last December 16.

Moneba’s relatives denied the allegations.

http://www.mindanews.com/2005/12/22nws-moneba.htm

The army arresting officers of this suspect is seemingly creating a criminal justice system of thier own and taken it into their own hands.

It is a travesty of justice in full magnetude in handling criminal suspects. There is no such thing as indefinite detention of suspects in our criminal procedure regardless of the graviity of an offense.

If they ignored the "writ of habeas corpus" issued by a competent court, they can be cited for contempt of court not to mention the violation of the Constitutional rights of the suspect as provided for in Art.111 Sec.1, para 1 & 2 of Sec.12 of the Philippine Constution under the Bill of Rights.

We can understand their ignorance in this field but ignorance of the law excuses no one and a prevailing aggravating circumstances cannot be ignored as they are military men under the AFP who are presumed to be the guardians of the law of the land and it's inhabitants thereof.

"We can understand their ignorance in this field but ignorance of the law excuses no one and a prevailing aggravating circumstances cannot be ignored as they are military men under the AFP who are presumed to be the guardians of the law of the land and it's inhabitants thereof."

THEY ARE NOT IGNORANT OF THE LAW MR TOPP AWARDEE. LIKE EVERY POLICE OFFICER WHO YOU MIGHT CLAIM AS THE MOST KNOWLEDGEABLE PERSONS WHEN IT COMES TO LAW, THE ARMY GUYS LIKE COL PABUSTAN KNOW THE CONSTITUTION. WHY THEY VIOLATE THE PROVISIONS OF THE CONSTITUTION, THEY HAVE THEIR OWN VALID REASONS. ON THE OTHER HAND, THE COMMUNIST REBELS ARE VERY MUCH AWARE OF THE CONSTITUTION. SOME OF THEM ARE LED BY THE BEST STUDENTS OF ATENEO AND UP. WHEN THE MILITARY AND POLICE COMMIT "VIOLATIONS" OF THE CONSTITUTION, THEY ARE VERY QUICK IN USING VARIOUS PROPAGANDA TOOLS TO AIR THEIR CASES. MOST OF THE TIMES, THE AFP/PNP ENDS THE LOSER.

YOUR MUST ALSO QUESTION YOUR FELLOW POLICEMAN WHO WERE INVOLVED IN THE HIGH-PROFILE RUB OUT CASES IF THEY ARE INDEED KNOWLEDGEABLE OF THE BILL OF RIGHTS AS PROVIDED BY THE CONSTITUTION. CONDUCT LECTURE ON THEM IF THEY ARE NOT. STOMPING ON THE INTELLIGENCE/KNOW-HOW OF THE PEOPLE FROM OTHER SERVICES WHILE PROJECTING THAT YOU, POLICEMEN, ARE THE VERY BEST, WON'T ERADICATE THE VARIOUS PROBLEMS OUR COUNTRY IS FACING.

OH, LET ME ADD THIS IMPORTANT PIECE THAT I MISSED: THE COMMUNIST REBELS, LED BY INTELLIGENT AND KNOWLEDGEABLE LEADERS, ARE THE BEST KNOWN VIOLATORS OF THE CONSTITUTION YOU ARE TALKING ABOUT. THE ARREST OF MR MONEBA WAS A RESULT OF THE TIP-OFF BY LOCAL RESIDENTS THAT HE WAS ONE OF THE PERPETRATORS OF THE AMBUSH OF THE ELEMENTS OF THE ARMY CIVIC ACTION TEAM WHO WERE SENT TO CONDUCT NON-COMBAT MISSION IN TULUNAN. THE MILITARY DOCTOR AND HIS BROTHER WHO WAS ALSO AN OFFICER WERE AMONG THOSE WHO WERE KILLED. :bs:

WHO SAYS SOMEBODY FROM OTHER SIDE (NPA REBELS AND GOVERNMENT FORCES) ARE IGNORANT OF THE LAW?????? :demon:

My comments about the ignorance of the law is not genetic. It is based on a case to case basis where some elements of the AFP or PNP overstepped the mark on handling criminal suspects. If you feel the pleasure of rummaging through my comments on topics about any miscarriage of enforcing the law in this forum, you can see many of that on the PNP threads that I was so very critical of law enforcers to include military men who have displayed some simple ignorance in upholding the law in connection with their sworn duties to protect all citizens of a peace-loving country to include themselves. My concerned about the NPA's is out of the fence as I consider them outlaws. It is utterly moot and academic to discuss about their part of adherence to the law.

I may shoot one question to those who felt offended by my comments about these military men who ignored the writ issued by a competent court,..- Are they not bound to obey and comply the writ ? I am just only basing my comments on the news story posted here in this thread by a member which is now the subject of our discussion. The fairness of my comments depended on the alleged defiance by those military men to comply a court order in a form of a writ. Explicit defiance by anybody to comply court orders and writs is a simple display of arrogance if not ignorance and cannot defy the interpretation of acting above the law, and citing them for contempt is the most appropriate legal action the court may impose.

If you have any problem on this area of the law, I am open to any discussion and I am happy to share it with you so that it may help to make you aware that the law is the law.
"DURALEX SED LEX" (The law is hard but it is the law). :thumb:

Mr. bolomanshooter, it is our pleasure if you could please spare a time to glance over our posting rules and give emphasis on Rule No. 10, which is straightforward regarding replying to your own post that is not allowed.

Thank you very much Sir, and please yourself, and your ideas and comments are veryt much welcome in this forum. Please refer to this link below.

Thanks,

TOPP- Member Moderators Group-PDFF


http://pdff.sytes.net/index.php?showtopic=1
Philippines Defense Forces Forum -> PDFF Posting Rules

reason #1: i know what i am doing, therefore i am above the constitution

what if i dont like your face and ask my buddy in the afp to pick you up, or your girlfriend/boyfriend, wife/husband, mother/father, son/daughter, and they recite these "reasons" back at you?

its easy to defend the trampling of someone else's rights..... but if its your own, then youll cry and wail about the injustice.....