Sue US Navy execs on Tubbataha incident, DOJ urged

MANILA, Philippines - Militant groups on Friday asked the Department of Justice to sue the US Navy officers and crew of USS  Guardian, a  mine sweeper, which ran aground last Jan. 17 at Tubbataha Reef in the Sulu Sea.

Fisherfolk Pamalakaya and Anakpawis party said Justice Secretary Leila de Lima should determine and file the criminal liabilities of American military personnel and staff behind the damage done to the reef, a declared world heritage site.

The groups noted that De Lima has yet to take an official position on the Tubbataha Reef environmental disaster since the incident.

"We hope Secretary De Lima will...pursue the legitimate concerns of the Filipino public along the lines of national sovereignty, environmental and social justice," the groups said.

They added that the DOJ should prepare the charge sheet against those involved in the environmental mishap and should entertain the proposal to file a class suit against the US government before an international body that address this kind of incident.

"The DoJ chief must express her own legal opinion on the matter because it is just, moral, politically correct and constitutionally appropriate," they said.
 
The groups said Rear Admiral Thomas Carney, head of the US Navy logistics in Western Pacific should be charged along with other US military officials and personnel for the environmental havoc and violation of the country's national sovereignty.

"The DoJ should pursue the case against US Navy officials behind the Tubbataha Reef massacre," they said. - Dennis Carcamo