Querubin released

MANILA, Philippines – An ex-colonel of the Philippine Marines who is on trial for a failed coup against then President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo was released from detention yesterday after more than four years in military custody.

Ariel Querubin walked out of a detention facility at the Army's intelligence services unit in Quezon City and was placed under the custody of his mistah, Brig. Gen. Reynaldo Ordoñez, chief of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) Defense Reforms, the military said.

“He was granted provisional liberty while his case remains on trial. He is now free to roam around, although he has to appear before the court if asked to do so,” Army spokesman Lt. Col. Marcelo Burgos said.

AFP spokesman Brig. Gen. Jose Mabanta said AFP chief Gen. Ricardo David has ordered Ordoñez to ensure Querubin's presence at every military hearing as well as preventing his escape.

The case was reviewed by military chiefs and it was determined there was no risk of flight, Burgos said.

Querubin, 53, was jubilant after winning his freedom.

"There is light at the end of the tunnel," he told reporters. "I will take a vacation first with my family and after that (I will have) to think about going to work again."

Querubin, who ran but lost in the May 10 senatorial race under the Nacionalista Party, said the move is a "step closer to justice." He is considered resigned from military service after he filed his certificate of candidacy for senator.

A recipient of the medal of valor, the highest military award, Querubin said he is looking forward to a favorable court decision. He said he is considering accepting a job offered by a private firm.

Burgos said the case would continue to be heard in military court, but gave no timeframe for the proceedings. Similar cases against alleged coup plotters have in the past dragged on for years before light sentences were eventually handed down or amnesties granted.

Querubin was one of two senior military officers charged and detained for a standoff at the Marine headquarters in 2006, which Arroyo said was part of a larger plot to topple her government.

The other officer, ex-Scout Ranger Brigadier General Danilo Lim, was freed in June – shortly after President Aquino was elected – under the same arrangement. Lim is also under the custody of Ordoñez.

Both men tried their hand in politics in the May elections, but both lost their campaigns for Senate seats.

The Philippines has a history of coup attempts, mostly carried out by officers demanding reforms amid a culture of political corruption.

The late President Corazon Aquino quashed at least seven coup attempts during her six-year term that ended in 1992.

A military-backed popular uprising toppled the graft-tainted government of Joseph Estrada in 2001, and he was replaced by Arroyo.

Arroyo withstood three attempts during her more than nine years in power.

Arroyo was succeeded on June 30 by Mr. Aquino, Corazon's son, who shortly after assuming power vowed widespread reforms within the military, including a long-delayed modernization program.