Phl drafting new rules on custody

MANILA, Philippines - The government is drawing up implementing rules for the Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA), including provisions on custody of US servicemen.

Justice Secretary Leila de Lima revealed this yesterday as she admitted there are “contentious issues” and “not so clear provisions” in the agreement.

De Lima said the government had been reviewing VFA provisions even before the killing of transgender Jeffrey “Jennifer” Laude allegedly by US Marine Private First Class Joseph Scott Pemberton in a motel in Subic on Oct. 11.

Any changes in the VFA must be agreed upon by both the Philippine and US governments.

“There are provisions where the Philippine and US sides have differing interpretations. That’s why we have to have implementing guidelines,” De Lima told a press conference yesterday.

Aside from the issue of custody, De Lima said the interpretations of the “certification of official duty” provisions were also being checked for inconsistencies.

“There are already ongoing talks on that,” she said. The suspect in the killing of Laude, 19-year old Marine Private First Class Joseph Scott Pemberton, is now at a special detention facility within the Joint United States Military Assistance Group (JUSMAG) compound at Camp Aguinaldo. He was flown to the camp from the amphibious assault ship USS Peleliu where he was held by his superiors shortly after the killing of Laude.

De Lima reiterated that it would be premature for the Philippine government to demand custody of Pemberton since the latter has not yet been indicted for murder.

“The transfer is just preparatory. The case is still in the preliminary investigation stage where he cannot be detained or jailed yet,” she said. “The issue of custody will only come in when the case is already filed in court and an arrest warrant is issued – assuming that probable cause will be found in the PI (preliminary investigation).”

She said it was “unnecessary” for Laude’s sister Marilou, and his German fiancé Marc Suselbeck to have forced their way into the heavily guarded compound where Pemberton was detained.

De Lima also she was satisfied with the handling by the Olongapo City Prosecutor’s Office of the murder case against the Marine.

At Malacañang, Presidential Communications Operations Office Secretary Herminio Coloma Jr. said the transfer of Pemberton to Camp Aguinaldo was a result of coordination between Filipino and US authorities and not pressure,

“A response is an answer to a stimulus. Which parties are coordinating? The government of the Republic of the Philippines and the government of the United States,” Coloma said.

“So it’s just reasonable to say that this is a product of the dynamics of coordination between two countries… with the end goal that there must be justice,” Coloma said in a press briefing.

Coloma said the quest for justice has always been the two parties’ thrust. He also said the media as well as Laude’s family and sympathizers should follow rules and regulations set by the military securing Pemberton’s detention cell.

Coloma said it is the duty of the military to ensure there would be no security lapses in the camp.

On Wednesday, President Aquino told members of the Foreign Correspondents Association of the Philippines that Pemberton was not getting kid glove treatment but “special negative treatment.”

“Bottom line is this: If you are a Filipino accused of the crime, you will not be detained at this point. If you cannot be charged, you will have to be set free. This guy is an American and he has less rights than a Filipino accused of the same crime. So you were saying special treatment; he is getting a special negative treatment in effect,” Aquino said in the FOCAP forum.

“He hasn’t been charged. He was not caught in the act and our rules – not the American rules – state that you have to go through a preliminary investigation,” Aquino said.

“So if you are telling me, why don’t I lead the bandwagon and say: ‘Let’s have mob justice and lynch this guy,’ I think that will be irresponsible on my part,” the President said.

“What else can I say actually, isn’t it? He is getting a treatment that is less… than that afforded by our system for a Filipino accused of a similar crime, and then you come up and tell me… he is getting a better treatment? I think it’s a worst treatment. And I don’t know… that is still lacking,” he said.

But Aquino gave assurance the VFA is under constant review and that he had relayed to the US side the importance of addressing the sensitivities of local communities.

“The Philippines, your longstanding ally expects to have that same treatment – that our sensitivities, our cultural needs and wants will have to be demonstrated and respected by all of these agreements, and that is a very fundamental aspect,” Aquino said.

“But, at the same time, negotiations are give and take. They cannot agree to something specific to the Philippines without it affecting all of their agreements elsewhere. I think we have to be reasonable,” he said.

Aquino said unlike in the case of another US Marine, Daniel Smith, who was convicted but later acquitted of raping a Filipina, the suspect was not being kept in the US embassy but in a Philippine facility – “extraterritoriality.”

“Now, he (Pemberton) is in our camp. I think they are responding to our needs and our sensitivities,” Aquino said. – Aurea Calica