CHR probes abduction of 2 activists in Bataan

The Commission on Human Rights (CHR) said Thursday it is now conducting an investigation into the abduction of two young environment defenders in Orion, Bataan on September 2.

In a statement, CHR said it has dispatched a quick response operation through its Central Luzon office to probe the disappearance of Jhed Tamano, 22, and Jonila Castro, 21.

The two women were reported volunteers of anti-reclamation network “Akap Ka Manila Bay” and were assessing the conditions of the fishing communities in the coastal towns of North Manila Bay who were affected by the reclamation projects.

Tamano and Castro, former members of Anakbayan at the Bulacan State University, were allegedly violently forced by unidentified armed men inside a gray SUV on Saturday night while they were on their way to conduct relief operations and consultation with communities.

“CHR is gravely alarmed by this latest case of alleged abduction only a few days after the observance of the International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearance,” the commission said.

It thus urged law enforcement agencies to search for the two missing activists, and asked witnesses and individuals with information to step forward and coordinate with the CHR and other investigation bodies.

CHR also called on the State to take decisive action before another case of missing human rights defenders is reported.

“In accordance with our protection mandate, CHR investigates any suspected case of enforced or involuntary disappearance. As Gender Ombud, we also call attention to the young women's vulnerability to gender-based abuse. Hence, it is crucial that resources are maximized to immediately find the young activists,” CHR added.

Progressive youth organization Anakbayan on Wednesday called for the immediate surfacing of Tamano and Castro, alleging that the Philippine National Police (PNP), Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), and the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC) were behind their abduction.

AFP spokesperson Colonel Medel Aguilar dismissed the allegation as a "baseless and malicious" propaganda.

NTF ELCAC National Secretariat executive director Undersecretary Ernesto Torres Jr., meanwhile, expressed deep concern with the reported abduction of the two, but said Anakbayan’s claim against the military and government is "completely unfounded and malicious."

The PNP, on the other hand, also denied the allegation that they were behind the abduction of the two environmentalists.

PNP chief Police General Benjamin Acorda Jr. has also ordered an investigation into the matter.—Giselle Ombay/AOL, GMA Integrated News