Dear Friends:

The rate of killings of activists has reached terribly outrageous proportions. We would appreciate if more church bodies/congregations will issue strong statements on this concern.

Justice for Rev. Edison Lapuz, Fr. William Tadena, Joel Baclao and all victims of state-sponsored killings!


May 13, 2005

Latest Victim: Activist Pastor Shot Dead in Leyte 

For failure to stop series of killing of activists and journalists, Arroyo should step down!

This was the assertion of the Promotion of Church People’s Response (PCPR) as church people expressed grief and outrage over escalating attacks against activist church workers, lawyers, journalists, leaders and members of cause- oriented groups under the Arroyo administration.

REV. EDISON LAPUZ was shot to death in the evening of May 12 after attending the funeral of his father-in-law in San Isidro, Leyte. He was a Conference Minister of the United Church of Christ in the Philippines (UCCP), an active member of the Promotion of Church People’s Response (PCPR), KARAPATAN and Bayan Muna in Eastern Visayas who issued strong statements against the killings and harassment of activists in the region. In fact, Rev. Lapuz was the main convenor of JUSTICE FOR ATTY. FEDILITO DACUT ALLIANCE in Eastern Visayas. Atty. Dacut was a human rights lawyer and Bayan Muna coordinator who was shot to death last March 14.

“Rev. Lapuz was consistent in supporting human rights victims and their families. We deeply mourn his death and we reiterate our demand for President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo to immediately order the military to stop the killing of activists in Eastern Visayas and anywhere. We condemn GMA’s consistent silence on the wave of killings of activists. Her silence is a strong indication that these brutal killings have the full blessings of Malacañang,” Rev. Fr. Allan Jose Arcebuche, OFM, PCPR Chairperson stated. At the height of his involvement in the regional campaign against human rights abuses and atrocities perpetrated by the military under General Jovito Palparan, Rev. Lapuz was eliminated by those who consider his kind as enemies of the state.

“We strongly suspect that those behind the brutal killings of Atty. Dacut and Rev. Lapuz are the same. Who else would have the guts to kill respected lawyers and church workers but the armed agents of the state under notorious human rights violators like Gen. Palparan? Palparan and all those involved in the killings, abduction and harassment of activists must be thoroughly investigated, arrested and punished,” PCPR demanded. PCPR will hold an indignation rally today from 6:00 am – 8:00 am at Welcome Rotonda then will join a multi-sectoral rally from 2:00 pm in Mendiola.

Conscious that he was being monitored by the military, Rev. Lapuz recently confided to PCPR national officers that he and other activist church people in Leyte and Samar were being harassed by the military. His name was reportedly included in the military’s Order of Battle and his photo was displayed in the camp of the Regional Mobile Group. Last February 18, Fr. Allan Caparro, an activist IFI priest barely survived an assassination attempt. Just last week Leo Davis, another UCCP member was killed by suspected military agents.
 
Contact PCPR National: 4107623 / 09213474039 
               PCPR Eastern Visayas: 09108518961