Author: DAVAO TODAY

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III. CASE STUDIES

A. Profile of Victims

The majority of the victims of the extrajudicial killings were members of the so-called left-wing organizations ? primarily Bayan Muna, Anakpawis, Bagong Alyansang Makabayan, Karapatan and KPD (Kilusan para sa Pambansang Demokrasya) and other cause-oriented groups like, for example, Task Force Mapalad and UNORKA (Ugnayan ng mga Nagsasariling Organisasyon sa Kanayunan) working for agrarian reform and other social justice issues.

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IV. FINDINGS

From the evidence and presentations received by the Commission, it became apparent early on that the Commission must differentiate its inquiry into the killings of activists from those of media personnel and agrarian reform movement. It appeared that the killings of media personnel are more or less attributable to reprisals for the victims? expos?s or other media practices. In the media killings, local politicians, warlords, or big business interests are viewed as the parties responsible for the killings, while in agrarian reform related killings, it is suspected that landowners and those opposed to the implementation of land reform are behind the killings. On the other hand, the killings of activists were invariably laid at the doorstep of the military.

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V. RECOMMENDATIONS

The Commission?s recommendations, which mostly fall within the Principles on the Effective Prevention and Investigation of Extra-legal, Arbitrary and Summary Executions, recommended by the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations on May 24, 1989, are as follows:

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VI. CONCLUSION

In ancient Sparta, life was dictated by war. In those turbulent times, city states were almost constantly at war ? with other neighboring city states and with marauding invaders. Thus, a strong military was absolutely necessary to the survival of the state.

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