The Daily Post (1/10/07)
Authorities have "downplayed" the advisory issued by the Australian government warning that Davao is a likely target of terror attacks in the coming days. "We knew about the threat. It…
The Daily Post (1/9/07)
That incident at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport, where the plane of the Davao-bound President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo (who was going to attend the wedding of the son of Davao City…
Davao ‘May Be Particular Target’ of Terror Attack
The Australian government has renewed its advisory warning its citizens from traveling to certain parts of the country, particularly in Mindanao and Cebu. The advisory warned that “Davao City may be a particular target” of terrorist attacks.
“The attacks could occur at any time, anywhere in Mindanao, including during the period 9-16 January which includes the Asean and East Asian Summits,” the advisory said. “Davao City may be a particular target.”
Abducted, Blindfolded, Tortured, Molested
One day in November, two NGO workers were abducted by soldiers in a village in North Cotabato. They were forcibly brought to a military detachment where they were blindfolded, interrogated, tortured and sexually molested. The soldiers tried to force them to admit that they were communist guerillas.
2006: A Year of Horror for Southern Mindanao?s Women Activists
SUFFERING WOMEN. This political art, seen at the Davao offices of the women’s group Gabriela, depicts the abuses women, particularly their activist sisters, go through under a repressive regime. (davaotoday.com photo by Cheryll D. Fiel)
According to the human-rights group Karapatan, 15 women from Southern Mindanao alone were killed in the past five years due to their political involvements. Nationwide, 86 of the more than 700 victims of political killings from 2001 to August 2, 2006, were women.
By Cheryll D. Fiel
davaotoday.com
DAVAO CITY — A young village teacher killed in a strafing incident. An elderly woman hacked to death while sleeping in her home. Two volunteers of a nongovernment organization abducted and tortured by the military. Another NGO worker disappeared without a trace.
Several women in Southern Mindanao went through these, and more, in 2006. It was a year that, overall, saw the deterioration of the state of human rights and civil liberties in the Philippines.