SITREP 14: GRP FILES SEDITION CHARGES AGAINST 15

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 MANILA 000889 SIPDIS SIPDIS DEPT FOR EAP, EAP/MTS, DRL/CRA, DS, CA E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/24/2016 TAGS: PINS EFIN ASEC CASC PREL KPAO RP SUBJECT: SITREP 14: GRP FILES SEDITION CHARGES AGAINST 15 IN OPPOSITION; PRESIDENT ARROYO LAUDS ECONOMIC SITUATION REF: MANILA 853 AND PREVIOUS Classified By: Charge d'Affaires, a.i., Paul W. Jones for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d) ¶1. (C) Summary: The police filed sedition charges with the Department of Justice (DoJ) on February 27 against 15 Opposition figures, including six leftist lawmakers. President Arroyo, in a TV interview given mid-day, lauded the performance of the economy and defended her State of Emergency declaration. Manila remains calm, overall, and the Philippine military reports no chain of command problems. In a conversation with Charge, former president Ramos said he was telling members of the Opposition to resolve things peacefully and not to resort to violence. In a separate meeting with Charge, Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) officials said they were disappointed with U.S. press statements on the situation, believing they did not take into consideration the GRP's side of the story. Opposition elements have filed two cases before the Supreme Court challenging the constitutionality of the State of Emergency. The peso fell marginally while stocks rose. Schools are set to reopen on February 28. No problems for AmCits have been reported; the next EAC is scheduled for February 28 morning. End Summary. -------------- Filing of Charges; More to Follow? -------------- ¶2. (SBU) On February 27, the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group of the Philippine National Police (PNP) filed charges of rebellion and conspiracy to commit rebellion with the Department of Justice against at least 15 respondents, including several left-wing "party list" representatives in Congress. The move comes after the arrest of leftist Representative Crispin Beltran on February 25 (reftels) on separate charges. Among those charged are: -- Peping Cojuangco, the brother of former president Corazon Aquino; -- Pastor "Boy" Soycon, a businessman; -- Gregorio "Gringo" Honasan, a former senator and retired military officer (separate charges were filed against Honasan on February 25); -- 1st Lt. Lawrence San Juan, one of the alleged mutineers in the "Oakwood Mutiny" of 2003 (already in custody); -- Attorney Jose Christopher Belmonte, Lt. San Juan's lawyer; -- Congressman Crispin Beltran, who is in custody; -- Congressman Satur Ocampo; -- Congressman Rafael Mariano; -- Congressman Theodore Casino; -- Congresswoman Liza Maza; -- Congressman Joel Virador (reportedly in custody); -- Joma Sison, the leader in exile of the Communist Party of the Philippines/New People's Army; -- Lt. Aldrin Baldonado; -- Patricio Bumidang, Jr.; and, -- Angelbert Gay; There are continuing reports that additional charges will be filed against other Opposition members. -------------- Arroyo's TV Interview -------------- ¶3. (U) A confident-looking President Arroyo appeared on a television interview show on February 27. Three Cabinet secretaries also appeared, including Secretary of National SIPDIS Defense Avelino Cruz, Secretary of Finance (DOF) Margarito "Gary" Teves, and Secretary of Trade and Industry Peter Favila. Arroyo acted as host during the program, prompting each secretary to speak about various matters in their portfolios. Arroyo said that the economy was on track due to the reforms her government has sponsored, and she noted the strong performance of the peso and the stock market over the past year. She warned that there was "a steep price for political mischief and that's the reason why we have had to declare a state of national emergency." Secretary Cruz stressed that the military -- including the Marines -- were following the chain of command, but said the DND and the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) remained "vigilant." -------------- Manila Calm; No Problems in Military Reported MANILA 00000889 002 OF 003 -------------- ¶4. (SBU) The atmosphere in the capital was calm on Monday, February 27. Schools from elementary- to the university-level were closed, but businesses remained open and traffic was out and about. Schools are set to reopen on February 28. Military checkpoints remained on the North and South Expressways (the main highways into and out of Manila), but traffic was not disrupted. The Philippine National Police (PNP) EOD (explosives, ordinance, disposal) unit reported that the AFP had found six sticks of dynamite under a bridge located near Fort Bonifacio and had safely removed them. The AFP reports no chain of command problems, unlike the February 26 incident with the Marines at Fort Bonifacio (see reftels). ¶5. (U) No large-scale demonstrations were reported during the day. Members of the left-wing political party Anak Pawis attempted to march to Camp Crame (the headquarters of the PNP) in Manila but were dispersed by police. The protesters were demanding the release of Anak Pawis party leader Crispin Beltran, a congressman who was arrested on February 25 (reftels). Students from the University of the Philippines planned to hold a rally on the evening of February 27 to demand the revocation of Proclamation 1017 (the presidential decree declaring a State of Emergency issued on February 24). -------------- Ramos Criticizes Cory and Opposition -------------- ¶6. (C) In an early morning telephone conversation with CDA on February 27, former President Fidel Ramos said he had "made calls" on February 26 to remind opponents of President Arroyo not to resort to violence, but to resolve things peacefully. As he had noted in a February 25 interview (see reftels),he said the government needed at least to clarify the meaning and scope of Proclamation 1017. Ramos was dismissive of former President Aquino, her "Yellow Army," and other Opposition politicians for converging on the Marine base at Fort Bonifacio the night of February 26, saying they had no business being there. Echoing another point he made in the February 25 interview, Ramos asserted that declaring a State of Emergency in the whole country (as opposed to only in the Capital's environs) was "overkill." He indicated that he was looking forward to discussing the situation with EAP Assistant Secretary Hill at a meeting scheduled for February ¶28. -------------- DFA Not Pleased with Press Statements -------------- ¶7. (SBU) Senior DFA officials privately indicated on February 27 that the GRP leadership had been disappointed with the U.S. Embassy statement on the proclamation of the State of Emergency, noting that they had hoped for a clearer appreciation of the circumstances that led the President to this step. President Arroyo may raise these concerns with A/S Hill in their February 28 meeting. The DFA officials also indicated that they would have expected the U.S. to understand that the State of Emergency proclamation would be helpful in improving the security of Amcits here in the Philippines. Charge replied that our statements simply focused on maintaining the rule of law, protecting civil and human rights, and observing constitutional principles we share with the GRP. -------------- Cases lodged before Supreme Court -------------- ¶8. (U) A well-known anti-Arroyo university professor (Randy David, who was arrested on February 24, but released shortly thereafter) and a left-leaning NGO have filed petitions with the Supreme Court to nullify Proclamation 1017. Both petitions have been assigned to justices and the Supreme Court is scheduled to discuss them en banc on February 28. (Note: Sitrep 5 describes the judicial review process in more detail. End Note.) According to Mission sources at the Supreme Court, more filings are expected in coming days. -------------- Peso Slightly Down; Stocks Up -------------- MANILA 00000889 003 OF 003 ¶9. (U) Overall market reaction is calm, with recent political events having marginal impact. The political noise has not quashed the cautious optimism of 2006. The Philippine Stock Price Index (Phisix) bounced back today, closing at 2089.36 up 0.9% from Friday's close of 2069.93 and almost matching last Thursday's closing level. The peso opened with a jittery start at 52.30 pesos/dollar but strengthened as the day progressed. Though Central Bank officials hinted that they had actively intervened in Friday's market to deal with volatility, the Bank did not intervene significantly Monday, with trading relatively thin. The peso was trading at an intra-day high of 52.04 pesos/dollar, although this rate remains slightly weaker than last Thursday's 51.66 pesos/dollar closing rate. Still, the peso remains stronger against the dollar than it did at the beginning of the year. A number of private bankers expect the peso to appreciate again this week if the political situation stays quiet. ¶10. (U) No panic buying of household essentials has occurred in retail markets, with stores and malls experiencing average sales over the weekend, a situation that contrasts sharply with previous periods of political upheaval, such as EDSA "1" (in 1986) or "2" (in 2001),when shelves were quickly emptied throughout metro Manila. -------------- AmCits; EAC -------------- ¶11. (U) No problems for AmCits have been reported; the next EAC is scheduled for February 28 morning. ¶12. (C) The crisis management center will remain in operation overnight. Visit Embassy Manila's Classified SIPRNET website: http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/eap/manila/index. cfm You can also access this site through the State Department's Classified SIPRNET website: http://www.state.sgov.gov/ Jones