MANILA, Philippines - At least 25 minors have filed charges against two teenagers who reportedly beat them and burned them with cigarettes as part of their initiation into a fraternity in Disiplina Village, Valenzuela City, an official said yesterday.
Seventeen boys and eight girls, ranging in age from 10 to 16, identified Regan Buen, 18, and 19-year-old Mario Reyes as “fraternity masters†and filed complaints of physical injury in relation to the anti-child abuse law against them, city police chief Senior Superintendent Rhoderick Armamento said.
Valenzuela social welfare and development chief Dorothy Evangelista, however, said that as of 2 p.m. yesterday, only 11 minors and their families approached their office for assistance in filing the cases.
Armamento told The STAR that the parents of eight of the minors sought the assistance of Councilor Tony Espiritu, chairman of the city council’s task force on fraternities and gang intervention and prevention, last Tuesday after their children went home with cigarette burns and contusions.
Buen and Reyes reportedly recruited the children to join the San Francisco-Novaliches (SFN) gang.
Armamento said the children told police that they were being urged to smoke marijuana and to fight with members of rival street gangs.
Suspect admits hazing
In an exclusive interview in the Valenzuela city jail, Buen admitted that he recruited at least five of the boys but pointed to a certain Hans Maturas as the real leader of the fraternity .
An investigator said Maturas is one of the complainants and identified Buen as the head of the fraternity. Buen said Maturas also acted as the “master initiator†and “only gave him authority to paddle the victims one in a while.â€
“He is the founder of the group and most of the children were recruited by him. Prior to the SFN gang he had already put up the ‘LOG,’ also a fraternity,†Buen said.
He said he smokes marijuana but denied teaching the children to do so.
One of the girls told The STAR that the male recruits were subjected to “paddling†and all the recruits were burned with a cigarette near the smallest finger on their left hand – the group’s symbol.
Armamento earlier said that the females were made to choose between “hirap o sarap (pain or pleasure)†during the initiation rite.
“If they choose pain they are subjected to initiation but if they choose pleasure, they will be molested,†he said.
Model village
Mayor Rex Gatchalian said he was surprised when he learned about the incident because Disiplina Village “is a model village and these people are not really legitimate Valenzuela residents.â€
“It is through the efforts of our block leaders that this gang was exposed and the leaders arrested,†Gatchalian said, adding the village was established as a relocation site for Valenzuela residents who were left homeless by Typhoon Ondoy.
Aside from the two suspects, Archemedes Pangandoyong, 55, was also arrested after he tried to prevent police officers from making arrests in the village.