Priest slams GMA over proposal protecting military secrets

A human rights advocate chided President Arroyo yesterday for ordering the Armed Forces  (AFP) and the Department of National Defense (DND) to draft a bill seeking to protect military secrets.

In an interview, Fr. Joe Dizon, Ecumenical Voice for Peace and Human Rights (EVPHR) co-convenor, said Administrative Order 197 was similar to her previous orders, which the Supreme Court has declared as unconstitutional.

“This is in the context of the political survival mode of the GMA administration, which is to curtail every available data against her, her administration and the ‘crimes’ she has committed against the people. We should condemn this,” he said.

“Definitely, we don’t need this. The people have the right to know vital information especially if it involves their own rights.”

Dizon said AO 197could be meant to shield the involvement of the administration and the military in controversial issues, specifically in the “Hello, Garci” scandal and the disappearance of activist Jonas Burgos.

“The ongoing Senate hearing on the ‘Hello, Garci’ controversy is definitely leading towards the doors of Malacañang, and they want to derail it.,” he said.

“Plus, the Jonas Burgos case has already gotten the attention of the international community and the involvement of the military has been clearly established already.”

AO 197 was an outright disrespect to the right of people to information that could be very vital to them, according to the EVPHR.

The revival of the “Hello, Garci” wiretapping controversy has once again placed the military in the spotlight with its supposed role in ensuring Mrs. Arroyo’s victory in the 2004 presidential elections.

The military has also been implicated in the mysterious disappearance of Burgos after the plate number of the getaway vehicle had been traced to a military camp in Bulacan.  

Last week, Mrs. Arroyo ordered military and DND officials to draft a bill that would ensure the protection of military secrets to ensure that military operations would not be hampered.

Mrs. Arroyo also directed the AFP and the DND to coordinate with the Presidential Legislative Liaison Office and allied members of the House of Representatives in the course of drafting the bill. – Edu Punay