Former communist adviser barred from entering US

Former Army general Raymundo Jarque, who served as an adviser to communist rebel negotiators, has been denied entry to the US and deported to the Philippines, Sen. Rodolfo Biazon said yesterday.

Biazon said Jarque and his wife Xenia were initially detained by US immigration authorities at the Dallas airport in Texas, possibly on suspicions of terrorism.

He said Jarque’s daughter on Wednesday signed the release papers for her parents "for immediate deportation to the Philippines."

The couple is expected back in Manila today, the senator said.

The former Armed Forces chief speculated Jarque, who was traveling with his ailing wife, was held by US authorities because of his affiliation with the National Democratic Front (NDF), an umbrella organization representing the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) and the New People’s Army (NPA) in the peace talks.

The US government has included the CPP-NPA-NDF on its list of foreign terror groups. "Their passports were confiscated because apparently, Brig. Gen. Jarque had been listed as a terrorist," Biazon said.

US Embassy in Manila press attaché Matt Lussenhop confirmed Jarque was denied entry into the US and returned to the Philippines for being a member of the CPP-NPA.

He said Jarque was "neither arrested nor detained" and was merely returned upon arrival.

Lussenhop did not elaborate, however, on what took place between US immigration officials and Jarque.

He said the US State Department has a listing of Foreign Terrorist Organizations (FTOs) but could not confirm if they have a list of individuals considered to be terrorists.

Voluntary return

The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) likewise reported Jarque and his wife Xenia arrived at the Dallas International Airport last Tuesday on board a Korean Airlines flight from Manila and were immediately detained.

Philippine Consul General in Los Angeles Marciano Paynor Jr. said the Jarque couple were there to visit their daughter Melissa Cunanan who lives in Irving, Texas.

He said Cunanan and her children were able to see her parents last Wednesday afternoon before the couple were ordered to fly back to Manila.

DFA spokesman Gilberto Asuque said the Philippine Consulate General had offered legal assistance to the Jarque couple through Cunanan in case she wants to secure the release of her parents.

Asuque said the couple signed documents for their immediate return to the Philippines.

Asuque said Cunanan arranged for the return of her parents to the Philippines on board a Korean Airlines flight that is expected to touch down in Manila at 10:50 a.m. today.

Asuque said the decision of US immigration officials denying Jarque entry was nothing unusual.

"It is the sole prerogative of any country to determine who should be allowed to enter the country," Asuque said.

National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) Interpol acting director Auralyn Pascual also confirmed Jarque had been denied entry on Sept. 20 after he allegedly admitted that he was a former NPA member.

Pascual said the Jarque couple were sent back to Manila after the interview with US Immigration officials at the Dallas airport.

"He (Jarque) was denied entry because the NPA, by US standards, is a terrorist group. He was immediately deported, so it would be (Dallas) airport to (Manila) airport. Jarque is the highest Army official to defect to the NPA," Pascual said.

He added the NBI will await instructions from the Department of Justice (DOJ) on whether they would arrest Jarque upon his return.

The former general is still connected with the NDF as one of its senior consultants. — With Evelyn Macairan, Antonieta Lopez, AP