The militant Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas (KMP) demanded that the US Marine rapists being kept under the custody of the US Embassy in Manila be turned over Philippine authorities immediately. 

According to Danilo “Ka Daning” Ramos, secretary general of KMP, “ we have learned from experience that when the US Embassy takes custody of American criminals especially those working for the US government they usually disappear. Cases in point are that of Michael Meiring, a CIA agent who accidentally injured himself when he set off a bomb in his hotel room in Davao in 2002. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) through the US Embassy hastily moved in and carted him off to who knows where. Then there is the case of the US soldier Reggie Lane who shot Buyong-buyong Isnijal in Jolo in 2001. Lane was in an actual combat mission with Filipino troops which is prohibited in the Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA), that was why his escape was covered up by the US Embassy,”

“These are just some of the cases that come to mind considering that when the US Bases were still here there were 52 rape and sexual molestation cases that have been documented but not one of the perpetrators have been brought to justice. Kieth Silkwood, Daniel Smith, Albert Lara, Dominic Duplantis, Corey Barris, and Chad Carpenter of the USS Essex are now probably undergoing debriefing procedures in the US Embassy to have a coherent alibi to escape from the charges,” added the peasant leader.

Meanwhile Carl Anthony Ala, public information officer of KMP said, “we should not wait further for them to escape, a hold departure order should immediately be issued by the Department of Justice (DOJ) considering that charges have already been filed against the culprits last Thursday. DOJ Sec. Raul Gonzales, should stop dilly-dallying and issue the order immediately, or else women the world over would consider him persona non grata,”

“Our call is still to JUNK the VFA, we must not wait for another  case like this to happen. Historically and statistically speaking cases of rape and sexual abuse increase when there are US soldiers in an area, in the whole of Asia, where US Bases are located more than 60,000 cases of rape and sexual molestation have occurred. By junking the VFA we defending Filipinas as well as our sovereignty,” ended Ala. # # #
 

KMP - 5 November 2005