(This post is an excerpt.)
In this post we’re going to try to glean what little we can from Melissa Roxas’ affidavit, in hopes that this information can reach those who may be able to help. Maybe you good folks can do the same?
Paging the US State Department — get off your asses and get to work; an American has been tortured in a friendly nation. Do something about it… do your goddamned jobs.
So then, parsing the affidavit’s contents. Let’s go to the details that will force immediate questions to be answered.
***
First of all, Roxas is an American citizen, with an American passport. Questions:
What is the US State Department doing about Roxas’ complaint against the Philippine government?
Why does it appear that there is there no consular support from the American embassy for Roxas?
What is the Department of Foreign Affairs doing about the allegations that a citizen of a friendly nation was tortured by state security agents?
Why is there no news of a parallel investigation being conducted by the DFA?
I’m not sure I understand why there doesn’t seem to be any diplomatic concern over the matter. As I recall, there’s been a lot of concern over American prisoners in unfriendly states, as reported in CNN and suchlike — why not even more concern for the torture of Americans in friendly nations?
A cynical friend had an opinion about this: “The reason why the US government doesn’t give a shit about her torture is because Melissa isn’t white. Or black, for that matter. Americans in government tend to have that kind of discrimination — if you’re not white, or if you’re not black, it sucks to be you.”
Now that’s a disappointment, if it is true. I’d like to see that cynicism proven wrong, that the American government will indeed give a damn about Americans, women and men both, whatever their extraction is.
***
Roxas said that from La Paz, Tarlac, where she and John Edward Jandoc and Juanito Carabeo were abducted, it took “more than an hour” to reach their destination. They used a van, so she said, but did not name a make or model in her affidavit.
Assuming that Melissa’s captors drove for about two hours (see, blindfolds tend to disorient and also wreck one’s sense of time), and assuming a travel speed of 40 to 80 km/h, averaging 60 km/h, the radius of possible locations for where Roxas and her companions would have been held and tortured would look something like this:
This radius of travel is a rough estimate. Investigators must feel free to pursue leads beyond the circular boundary. Additional information — for instance, the impressions that Roxas had during the travel (was the road smooth or bumpy, did they travel fast or slow) — could very well narrow down this radius or even redraw it altogether.
***
From Roxas’ affidavit, from her conjectures we can draw this diagram of the layout of the place where she and her companions were detained:
There are quite a number of data points that I personally find interesting. These are:
Roxas said that she heard “planes taking off and landing and it was loud.” It would be interesting to note whether the sound was that of small propeller-driven aircraft (like single-propeller Cessnas and Piper Cubs), large propeller-driven aircraft (like the C-130 Hercules), or that of large jet engines (like the passenger Airbuses or Boeings). If she can identify the sounds — and therefore the type of aircaft — it will become simpler to find out if the place where she was taken was near or at a military airbase, a small civilian airfield, or even a large civilian airport.
Roxas did not mention whether or not she heard the sound of helicopters. This is strange.
Roxas mentioned that she heard the sound of construction activities going on. Thus, the facility or safehouse must be found to have construction or demolition ongoing, or newly-constructed structures, or recently-demolished rubble.
Roxas heard gunfire similar to that of a firing range. Did she hear the sound of pistols or rifles or both? Heck, did she hear heavy ordnance, like artillery and suchlike?
Roxas’ impressions of the area of detention could describe many possibilities, ranging from a military base’s area for officer quarters to a compound adjoining a firing range (could be civilian or military, depending on the sound of the weapons) near an airstrip or airport.
With these impressions, perhaps the statement of 7th Infantry Division chief of staff Col. Leonido Bongcawil, saying that there are 19 airstrips and airfields, as well as several firing ranges, in the whole of Nueva Ecija and not only in Fort Magsaysay, the Army division’s headquarters, is a clever piece of disinformation? Would it not be possible that Roxas was taken to a safehouse near Diosdado Macapagal International Airport? Yes, folks, could Melissa have been taken to a safehouse near Clark? See, the location has to be where aircraft are loud in taking off and landing AND (not OR) a firing range is nearby.
How sinister it would be if her abductors were indeed military men and she was taken to a safehouse in a civilian area.
Perhaps even Armed Forces Chief of Staff Gen. Victor Ibrado’s statement that his feedback from Army chief Lt. Gen. Delfin Bangit “that no such incident happened in Tarlac” is also a clever deception — as the entire incident (except for the abduction itself) need not have taken place in Tarlac.
***
A strange sidelight to Roxas’ story, however… one that might even turn the tables and if true would tell us that Roxas is being used as a pawn in a bigger, even more sinister scheme:
Melissa’s captors took pains to emphasize that she better not speak with Karapatan. Could it be possible that Melissa is being programmed? That Melissa’s US citizenship is the ace in the hole that militants are using to further their ends?
On the other hand, if it was indeed the military did abduct and torture Melissa, such would be more proof that “military intelligence” is an oxymoron among this evil men and women.
***
Let’s hope that Melissa gets justice; let’s put in what help we can.
Human rights and civil and political rights are universal — when someone’s rights are trampled, so are ours.
Let’s keep an eye on this, folks.
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it appears that melissa is a misguided alien political activist who chose to immersed herself in another country’s domestic strife. by her voluntary action, she has assumed the risk of being treated as an “enemy”. her affidavit is a self-serving statement that is less than persuasive, at best. of course, the u.s. government cannot be expected to interfere without creating an undesirable “international incident”. it is doubtful it would compromise its whole foreign relation in defense of one citizen’s alleged political indiscretions. i do not believe there’s a “racial” issue here. i think a u.s. passport does not entitle anyone to automatic “protection” when he/she gets into trouble in a foreign country through his/her own actions.
Amen to that, friend. I’d call it ‘looking for trouble’. Since the organization that she was attached to is itself associated with an organization the US government has put on its terrorist list, their reluctance to take any further action at this point is understandable. One hysterical-sounding and uncorroborated affidavit does not a diplomatic incident make.
Like I’ve said before, if her priority was to help disadvantaged people receive medical care, there are many apolitical organizations who have far greater resources to meet that goal than Bayan. Not advocating kidnap and torture, certainly, but she can’t throw herself in a fire and then complain it burned her.
There is no hesitancy, the US government is taking action, investigating to obtain more details about whas has happened with one of its citizens, with US State Department (and US Embassy, Manila as lead) obtaining the cooperation of their counterparts within Philippine government.
mike h, an “investigation” to ascertain what really happened is different from “taking action” solely on the basis of roxas’ affidavit. the latter is what this post apparently looks for – the condemnation of the philippine government for alleged violation of human rights.
All Melisa Roxas has to do is get an appointment with her Congressman
in her Distric County in the U.S. Tell her Congressman about her
story. That personnel of the Armed Forces of the Philippines abducted
and tortured her as she was conducting humanitarian works. She can also write to her Congressman or Senator in her State.
To the Armed Forces Chief and those high ranking officers involved:
The Philippines is not a Banana Republic. We do not torture people who disagree with us. We are a civilized Democratic Society. We dont
condone such barbaric acts. Clean your ranks of those criminal
elements. Before you will face Human Rights abuses yourselves in the
International Court at The Hague, Neatherlands.
It is lucky that Ms. Roxas came out alive to tell her story.
Sino hahabulin ng US gov’t?
You can see how the U.S. government works. It will produce
results in due time, if you go to the right people. Not
unlike the Philippines.
Bencard,
Was Melissa abducted and tortured? If so, by whom? That is the issue.
Hey Busters, we have brains to think. We can figure out things.
We are not dumb as anybody else from the Philippine government.
and that issue cannot be resolved by her own affidavit. she has to produce credible and admissible evidence. n.b., i would view her own testimony with suspicious eyes knowing where she’s coming from and possible motivations to lie.
Bencard,
All I’m saying is a thorough investigation is called for.
right, remember william pomeroy in the days of old, and walker, the white american taliban who fought against the u.s.?
The US is a giant legal ship of state that is not inclined to steam “all ahead full” to “jail” the Philippines for torturing an American. That is effectively the gist of what the writer of this article demands, and he affixes to it accusations of US state-based racism. The US is correct to defer to the Philippines in the exercise of legal remedies thereby showing RESPECT for the Filipino nation (and race) . . .
It is worth pointing out that Ms. Roxas acted against the advisories of the US State Department which warn Americans to be careful in Mindanao.
To put it simply, a technique I learned from the esteemed Benign0: When one enters a war zone and espouses the views of the enemy, one entertains certain risks . . .
And to put it bluntly, a technique I learned from my brother, who was disinclined to brook much sympathy for the errors of my ways: Is Roxas stupid, or what?
And if was an official and illegal undertaking of the Philippine military . . . let those responsible be held accountable under the laws of the Philippines.
Joe
@joe, no, joe, i personally do not believe to be true such a thing as us state-based racism. however, as the speaker of the anecdote related to me pointed out a perceived difference between the situations of roxana saberi vis-a-vis laura ling and euna lee — i presume you will note that there was much concern re saberi’s case and she was freed while ling and lee are still in a work camp?
second, was tarlac a war zone during that period? was there a travel advisory issued on central luzon during that period? i don’t believe so. roxas was not acting against an advisory cautioning americans not to travel through central luzon.
@ben k, are habi and bayan-usa part of the us terrorist list? indeed.
@bencard, i’m not looking for automatic condemnation of the RP government; i am in full agreement with MB that a full investigation is called for. i’m merely surprised that the us government has not communicated officially re concern over the allegations that an american citizen has been tortured in a friendly nation.
i have my own suspicions — could not roxas have been programmed (think torture by the friendlies ala V for Vendetta), her foreign citizenship a cudgel to use by the programmers?
the affidavit as it is, however, is gripping and chilling enough reading to try to visualize its content, so therefore the post above.
@mb, agreed that who kidnapped and tortured roxas is the issue. despite the tenor of automatic finger-pointing at the military, i wouldn’t put it past the armed terrorist left to themselves perform this atrocity.
I wrote this in my own blog on the 16th:
“Consider for a moment the gravity of such allegations, particularly in a recent media cycle in which the world has been treated to the disturbing saber-rattling of North Korea (including, possibly, a definable act of war committed by that country against the US and South Korea), the conviction and imprisonment of two American journalists in North Korea, the coup in Honduras, the violent protests in the aftermath of the Iranian presidential election, and bloody unrest in Western China. Government-sponsored evil-doing is hot right now. Granted, the news cycle tends to have a high refresh rate, but something like the sanctioned kidnapping and torture of an American citizen by the military forces of an allied nation, without charge or reference to legal process ought to register as more than a blip on the media radar.
And so what has happened to this story? In the US media, Melissa Roxas attracted exactly ZERO attention, and even here in the Philippines, which thrives on bad news, her alleged ordeal had a less-than-normal lifespan. Her affidavit and statements were reported, as were the dismissive reactions of relevant government authorities and a lukewarm statement from a “spokesman” from the US Embassy (which apparently didn’t consider the issue a big enough deal to trot out the Ambassador herself or even one of the vice-consuls) assuring the public that they take such matters “very seriously” and were “looking into it.””
All manner of speculation can be drawn from both Roxas’ story and the curious reaction to it. And while it is true that habi and bayan-usa are not specifically part of the terror list, their relationship with the organization and people who are is well-noted by the State Department. Too strong a reaction by the US, in the absence of compelling evidence, is just not sensible politically or legally. Have you considered, for example, what the ramifications would be if the US voices suspicions against the Philippine military or government, and it then it turns out that it actually WASN’T the military or some government-connected outfit? No wonder the US isn’t touching this.
I have my own speculation, but it is no more valid than anyone else’s is, for exactly the same reason: there is no evidence to support it. No matter what anybody thinks, the only information is a single affidavit from a complainant, and one that is lacking in details that would help to guide an investigation at that.
what’s the point in communicating “officially” one country’s concern over an unsubstantiated allegation of torture to another independent country? what purpose would that serve beyond putting the latter under a cloud of doubt internationally. you don’t think the u.s would be that stupid and irresponsible, do you?
What was interesting to me was not so much the governments’ reactions, which were not surprising, but the media’s. Especially compared to a cut-and-dried case like Lee/Ling in North Korea.
Jester,
Okay, thanks for correcting my geography. We are not far apart. I agree the affidavit is chilling and would wish that experience on no one. I hope the investigation is forthright and fair . . .
Joe
The U.S. gov’t won’t do a thing about this. They would end up being a hypocrite if they told the Phil. Gov’t not to use torture as a method of rooting out dissidents. Even if Melissa is not an NPA, I don’t think it matters. They themselves use torture to interrogate terrorists. President Nixon and Bush allowed “legal” torture if I’m not mistaken. Try searching waterboarding torture which had some attention when terrorist attacks were big news. It was a horrible method, and an insanely twisted way to collect information from captured ‘terrorists’. It was government sanctioned btw.
Some just think that torture is justified in keeping stability of a country. I don’t think it is. And making it legal is an extreme form of twisting justice.
I think its a far cry from being a racist issue. I even wonder how it got there. Why would we even want support from the U.S.? If we start acting like a dependent country always asking for support the more we would look like a colony rather than an independent country who knows how to solve its own problems. I know we can deal with this problem without foreign support. Its on the perrogative of Melissa Roxas. And wouldn’t it send the wrong signal since other tortured people from this country are not given the same attention since they are not American citizen?
I feel for Melissa though, assuming what she says is true. I saw the documentary on T.V. The video showing her with firearms training with the NPA was very convincing. The military even pointed a mole on her left cheek which matched the video. If she turns out to be a real NPA and is just exaggerating her claims it would really make us look bad given we ask foreign support.