Rape victims urged to sue Abu bandits
By Rene S. Custodio
THE Commission
on Human Rights (CHR) yesterday urged the government to persuade the freed foreign female
hostages allegedly raped while in the custody of Abu Sayyaf bandits to file charges
against their abusers.
CHR chairman
Aurora Navarette Reciña even offered the services of the commission to help the alleged
rape victims to seek justice.
Risto Vahanen, one
of the 21 hostages recently freed by the terrorists, had earlier disclosed to Finnish MTV3
that some of the women hostages were raped by their captors.
“I supposed
that some of the women were treated in an appropriate manner,” Vahanen said.
When asked if they
(women) were raped, he answered in the affirmative, and named Ghalib Andang alias
Commander Robot as one of those who raped the captives.
While not
discounting the possibility that the kidnapped women were sexually abused, Reciña said
the alleged rape will be met with skepticism if the victims will not come out in the open
and seek the punishment of the culprits.
“As of
now, we don’t know the truth yet. The government should help the supposed victims,
but first, they should come out in the open and seek help from the Philippine government
to charge whoever raped them,” she told THE MANILA TIMES in a telephone interview.
Rape incidents
In disclosing the
rape incidents, aired on the Finnish television, Vahanen said the raped women did not want
their names disclosed, although they agreed to make the rape incidents public.
Reciña pointed
out, though, that there is a reason to doubt the allegation since the information, true or
not, did not come from the alleged victims themselves.
“If rape was
really committed, they (women) should not be afraid and I’m sure the government will
be more than willing to help them. Anyway, they are now free and can fight the culprits
with the full protection of the law,” she said.
Reciña said the
commission will help in the investigation for the purpose of finding evidence that will
strengthen the case. She added that the CHR will even try to look for witnesses
against the Abu Sayyaf rapists.
“If a case is
filed, then we are willing to come in. We will conduct our own investigation since the
crime is also a violation of human rights, and we will try to persuade witnesses against
the Abu Sayyaf bandits who sexually abused these women,” Reciña added.
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