US embassy cable - 05MANILA1774

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 MANILA 001774 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
 
DEPT FOR EAP/PMBS, DRL/CRA, INR/EAP 
 
E.O. 12958:N/A 
TAGS: PHUM, PGOV, PINR, SOCI, RP 
SUBJECT:  LATEST VIGILANTE KILLINGS IN CEBU - NO END IN SIGHT 
 
REF: A. MANILA 0312 
B. 04 MANILA 5220 
C. 04 MANILA 4331 
 
1.  (U) Summary:  Summary executions of suspected criminals 
by "death squads" in Cebu are continuing at an alarming 
rate.  According to media reports, suspected vigilantes have 
killed at least 41 people since December 2004.  Civil 
society groups have condemned the extrajudicial killings, 
but much of the public appears willing to tolerate them as 
an expedient means of combating crime.  So far, police have 
not arrested any perpetrators in any of the attacks.  End 
Summary. 
 
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Vigilantes Continue Their Bloody Campaign 
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2.  (U) The death count of suspected criminals continues to 
rise in Cebu, the second largest city in the Philippines, 
where at least 41 people have been killed since December 
2004, according to media reports.  (Note:  Police 
investigators claim that only about thirty of these are 
cases of vigilante killings.  End note)  On April 10, a lone 
gunman onboard a motorcycle fatally shot Erwin Arquillano, 
who had just been released from jail for robbery.  On April 
1, an unidentified man shot and killed Misael Lopez, whom 
local residents had reported to be a thief in his village. 
On the same day, a masked gunman murdered Noel Canoy, who 
had been detained twice in the Bagong Buhay (New Life) 
Rehabilitation Center (BBRC) for substance abuse, pick 
pocketing, armed robbery, and burglary.  Another former 
inmate of BBRC, Edgar Caballero, died from gunshot wounds 
after an unidentified man shot him on March 29.  Caballero 
had also been detained in BBRC several times between 2002 
and 2004 for illegal possession of a firearm. 
 
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Church, Lawyers, and Civic Groups Condemn Killings 
--------------------------------------------- ------ 
 
3.  (U) The Catholic Church in Cebu, led by Archbishop 
Ricardo Cardinal Vidal, and the Cebu Chapter of the 
Integrated Bar of the Philippines (IBP) criticized Cebu City 
Mayor Thomas Osmena and condemned the extrajudicial killings 
in the city.  Cardinal Vidal has forcefully denounced the 
summary executions in his homilies and through the 
archdiocese's newsletter, urging Cebuanos to reject the 
"culture of death."  The IBP passed a resolution in January 
2005 urging the Cebu City Police Office to arrest the 
perpetrators of these summary executions and to help solve 
criminality in the community in accordance with the rule of 
law.  Lawyers and civil society groups formed a multi- 
sectoral alliance against the rise in vigilante killings in 
Cebu on January 31, 2005.  The alliance announced plans to 
create a speaker's bureau publicly to explain its position 
against the killings. 
 
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Suspected Police Involvement 
---------------------------- 
 
4.  (U) The series of summary executions began on December 
23, 2004, two days after Mayor Osmena announced the creation 
of the "Hunter Team," a special squad of police tasked to go 
after criminal elements in the city.  Osmena also offered a 
reward of 20,000 pesos (370 USD) to the police force for 
every criminal "permanently disabled and neutralized."  The 
mayor has denied any involvement by him or the Hunter Team 
in any of the summary executions, while noting that, as a 
result of the vigilante killings, crime in Cebu has gone 
down. 
 
5.  (U) The Secretary of Interior and Local Government, 
Angelo Reyes, has ordered the Cebu City Police immediately 
to arrest any individuals belonging to vigilante groups 
thought to be involved in the killings of both convicted and 
suspected criminals.  Senators Manuel Villar and Richard 
Gordon also warned the Cebu police force to stop summary 
executions of suspected criminals. 
 
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Public Support for Extrajudicial Methods 
---------------------------------------- 
 
6.  (U) Cebu Governor Gwendolyn Garcia has publicly 
supported Osmena's Hunter Team, saying that a "chilling 
message" must be sent to culprits who thwart government 
efforts to keep peace and order.  The Cebu Chamber of 
Commerce and Industry (CCCI) also expressed its strong 
support to the Hunter Team, stating that the promotion of 
peace and security is a vital component in the city's 
economic development initiatives.  Even the Commission on 
Human Rights (CHR) Regional Director (Region 7) Alejandro 
Alonso lauded the creation of the Hunter Team and the 
mayor's reward program to police officers who apprehend 
notorious criminals, albeit emphasizing the need for 
safeguards to prevent abuse of official authority. 
 
7.  (U) In a meeting on April 6 with new Director General of 
the Philippine National Police General Arturo C. Lomibao, 
Pol/C expressed serious concern about extrajudicial 
killings, noted that the USG reported at length on this 
subject in our annual report to Congress on human rights, 
and warned of possible consequences for US assistance 
programs to security forces.   General Lomibao promised that 
the police would investigate such cases. 
8.  (SBU) Comment:  Many, perhaps even a majority of Cebu 
residents appear to support the Mayor's tough stance against 
crime, especially appreciative of the drop in crime rates. 
As long as local officials believe that the public will 
tolerate such extreme measures, they are likely to continue 
at least tacitly to sanction such killings, despite our 
repeated expressions of concern. 
 
RICCIARDONE