MANILA, Philippines - The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) would not get back at Melissa Roxas, the Filipino-American activist who accused soldiers of kidnapping and torture, saying she was just used by insurgents to malign the military.
AFP spokesman Commodore Miguel Rodriguez yesterday said they would not gain anything if they file charges against Roxas, whose claims have been refuted by the Commission on Human Rights (CHR).
“We have no intent of doing that (file cases against Roxas). First, what is there to gain by filing charges against Melissa Roxas?” he said in a press briefing.
Rodriguez said while the military is not behind Roxas’ kidnapping, she may have really been seized.
“She (Roxas) was (kidnapped). But the truth came out and the Armed Forces is not responsible for it. She has suffered so let’s commiserate with her,” he said.
Rodriguez said Roxas might have been used by the New People’s Army (NPA) to discredit the military.
“Justice has been served. We feel sorry for Melissa Roxas. She may have been used… Who else would want to set us up? Most probably the NPA,” he said.
Rodriguez said the AFP’s decision not to get back at Roxas would not encourage activists to hurl false accusations against soldiers.
“As long as we are ready and transparent, I don’t think those (accusations) will stick,” he added.
Roxas alleged that she and two companions were seized in Tarlac on May 19, 2009 while they were conducting immersion activities in the province.
Roxas, a member of the left-leaning militant group Bayan, alleged to have suffered torture while in detention.
The CHR, however, said there was insufficient evidence to support Roxas’ allegations.
In a resolution dated Feb. 14 and furnished to the media last week, the CHR said there were “strong indications” that NPA members were behind her kidnapping.
“There is insufficient evidence… to pinpoint individual members of the AFP as the possible or probable perpetrators (of the kidnapping),” stated the CHR resolution signed by the agency’s chairperson, Loretta Ann Rosales.
The Army hailed the CHR ruling and maintained that the military would not do anything that would violate human rights.
“The Army leadership reinforces its commitment not to tolerate nor condone any human rights violation and directed the troops to always observe and uphold human rights in all its operations,” Army spokesman Col. Antonio Parlade Jr. said.
Parlade said the ruling vindicated the military and proved that Roxas’ accusations were fabricated by the NPA.
“The NPA did that to destroy the image of the Army,” he said.
The Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) denounced the CHR resolution and belied claims that the NPA was behind Roxas’ abduction. The NPA is the armed wing of the CPP.
“The CHR has done Melissa Roxas and her companions a grave injustice… It proceeded to insult the Filipino people by supporting the military’s claim that the detention and torture of Roxas was possibly carried out by the NPA,” the CPP said in a statement.
The CPP said the CHR resolution favored human rights violators and torturers in the military.
Roxas, an American citizen, has not surfaced since she made her allegations.