MELO COMMISSION FRUSTRATED BY ONGOING KILLINGS

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 MANILA 002262 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/03/2017 TAGS: PHUM PREL MOPS RP SUBJECT: MELO COMMISSION FRUSTRATED BY ONGOING KILLINGS REF: A. MANILA 777 ¶B. MANILA 609 ¶C. MANILA 468 ¶D. MANILA 2198 Classified By: Pol/C Scott Bellard, reasons 1.4 (b) and (d) ¶1. (C) Summary. The Melo Commission wrapped up its current mandate on June 30, and will submit a second report to President Arroyo by the end of July. While impressed with the number of new measures that the government has instituted, Commission members remain frustrated that the killings continue. They were unable to meet with key leftist NGOs, despite earlier indications from those groups of a new willingness to cooperate. The Embassy continues to raise the issue of unlawful killings with our interlocutors, and will maintain our active efforts to seek additional ways in which the U.S. Government might provide additional assistance to enable the Philippine government better to pursue these cases. End Summary. ¶2. (C) In a meeting with Pol/C on July 3, Melo Commission chairman retired Supreme Court Justice Melo and Commission members Bishop Pueblos of Butuan, University of the Philippines Regent Gonzalez, and Chief State Prosecutor Zuno confirmed that their mandate had expired on June 30 and that they did not believe the President would extend it again. They are now preparing a second report to the President (ref c reported on the first),but admitted that they have few new proposals to add to their earlier list. Justice Melo commented favorably on how President Arroyo had moved so quickly to adopt many of his recommendations earlier this year (ref b),but admitted that implementation was likely imperfect, at best. ¶3. (C) Justice Melo said that the next report would again call upon the President to make even more explicit her absolute opposition to unlawful and extrajudicial killings, while noting that the President had already spoken out publicly and often in opposition and had also vowed to bring any and all culprits to justice, regardless of who they were. Justice Melo added that he would explore the possibility of drafting a proposed law that would enshrine the principle of "command responsibility" to ensure that individual AFP commanders would necessarily face legal punishment not only for such killings by their subordinates but also for any failure actively to investigate and bring culprits to justice. He admitted that such a law might have a difficult time making it through Congress, but underscored that the continuing violence against leftist activists and journalists had given the Philippines a "black eye" internationally. ¶4. (C) Commission members explained that they had tried to set up meetings with various leftist groups, notably the NGO Karapatan -- which has made the highest claims for unlawful killings nationwide -- but earlier hopes fizzled as Karapatan and other groups began to make "impossible demands," notably trying to pick and choose with which Commission members they would be willing to meet. Justice Melo said that it also became increasingly clear to him that Karapatan in particular might use such a meeting as to make propaganda points against the government and in favor of leftist party list groups during the campaigning for the May 14 mid-term elections. ¶5. (C) Justice Melo complained that the Armed Forces of the Philippines leadership still seemed to be "in denial" about the possible participation by troops in some killings, despite the establishment of a new AFP Human Rights Office to investigate such allegations. He lamented the under-funding of this office and the junior rank (Lt. Colonel) of its chief as serious impediments to effective investigations. He welcomed possible assistance for this office from the U.S. as part of the Philippine Defense Reform (with one U.S. Subject Matter Expert already imbedded in the AFP Inspector General's Office) and from the European Union following its recent Needs Assessment Mission (ref d),with which he met. ¶6. (C) Chief State Prosecutor Zuno lamented that more than 400 vacancies within the prosecutor corps nationwide made it almost impossible vigorously to pursue these cases, despite a mandate from the Supreme Court and the Department of Justice to prioritize such cases. Only significant new funding for salaries might address this deficiency, given that private sector salaries even for new graduates were significantly better than for prosecutors. Many prosecutors also quickly leave these jobs to become judges, where the salary scales are better, he admitted. Zuno noted more positively that a long-awaited Executive Order on police/prosecutor cooperation had gone through final vetting to ensure its full compliance with the rules of court, and would likely go to the President for signature within weeks. MANILA 00002262 002 OF 002 ¶7. (C) Comment: The distinguished composition of the Commission is a tribute to the government's desire for some credible recommendations, and the government also deserves credit for quickly acting on most of the key items. Frustrations remain high that some killings nonetheless continue, and that court cases are few, with few convictions so far, however. The Embassy continues to raise the importance of making progress in bringing culprits of unlawful killings to justice in our discussions with Philippine officials from the President on down, and will maintain our active efforts to seek additional ways in which the U.S. Government might provide additional assistance to enable the government better to pursue these cases, such as a likely upcoming grant from USAID of US$1 million to assist the Philippine Commission on Human Rights. Visit Embassy Manila's Classified website: http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/eap/manila/index. cfm KENNEY