Last July 15, 2024, the Davao del Norte Regional Trial Court Branch 2, under acting Presiding Judge Jimmy Boco, convicted ACT Teachers Partylist Representative France Castro, former Bayan Muna congressman Ka Satur Ocampo, and other lumad teachers and rights defenders, known as the Talaingod 18, on the charges of violating Republic Act No. 7610, the "Special Protection of Children Against Abuse, Exploitation, and Discrimination Act." Bagong Alyansang Makabayan-Southern Mindanao (BAYAN-Southern Mindanao) condemns these trumped-up charges and the questionable court decision.
The court decision leaves a bad taste in everyone’s mouth as it denies the fundamental aspect of the case: the Talaingod 18 and other advocates were there to aid the lumad students and teachers of Salugpongan Ta 'Tanu Igkanogon Community Learning Center against threat, harassment and forced eviction by the paramilitary group Alamara along with the military. Recalling the incident on November 28, 2018, a supposed National Solidarity Mission led by Save Our Schools Network became a "rescue mission" to help the students and teachers threatened by armed forces. However, soldiers and police held more than 40 individuals along with several lumad students and on the following day, leaders like Ka Satur Ocampo, Representative France Castro and 16 others mostly teachers were arrested on charges of kidnapping, failure to return a minor, human trafficking, and child abuse.
The court decision is clearly a miscarriage of justice, neglecting crucial facts presented by the Talaingod 18 camp and the real perpetrators of the closure of Lumads schools have not been investigated, as this decision was politically maneuvered to silence Rep. France Castro, Satur Ocampo, and other indigenous peoples' rights defenders.
It is a desperate and coward attack for justice to be swayed by such maneuvers, as it should be the one protecting the truth with fairness and adherence to the law of the land. It is dangerous to set a precedent where truth can be manipulated aiming to trample the dignity of genuine opposition figures and human rights defenders.
Marcos Jr. and Duterte have been known to use maneuvers to obscure the injustices and atrocities committed against the people. Duterte and Marcos’ tenure demonstrated this through the manipulation of legal processes to convict former senator Leila de Lima, the imprisonment of numerous political detainees, and the misuse of the law to demonize activists by red-tagging them and labeling them as terrorists or terrorist sympathizers.
Therefore, we call on the people to unite and fight the ills of our justice system. Our united call to #DefendTalaingod18, #DefendLumadAdvocates is crucial to protect the integrity of the law.
Bagong Alyansang Makabayan-Southern Mindanao
