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Cops who arrested rights defender in Cagayan didn't know case dismissed

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ABS-CBN News

<p>MANILA – Plainclothes cops in Cagayan province arrested a human rights defender on Monday because they were not informed that the murder case against her had already been dismissed, a police spokesperson said.</p><p>Human rights advocacy group Karapatan said on February 28 that Agnes Mesina, regional coordinator of the Makabayan coalition in Cagayan Valley, was arrested for a murder charge which was already dismissed by a Davao del Norte court in July 2021.</p><p>She was released a few hours later.</p><div><script src="https://connect.facebook.net/en_US/sdk.js#xfbml=1&amp;version=v2.5" async="" type="text/javascript"></script></div><div class="fb-post" data-href="https://www.facebook.com/karapatan/posts/10165820684445153?_rdc=1&amp;_rdr" data-width="auto"> </div><div><script src="https://connect.facebook.net/en_US/sdk.js#xfbml=1&amp;version=v2.5" async="" type="text/javascript"></script></div><div class="fb-post" data-href="https://www.facebook.com/karapatan/posts/10165821982570153?_rdc=1&amp;_rdr" data-width="auto"> </div><p>Mesina was part of a group which was supposed to conduct a community outreach and fact-finding mission in a community affected by aerial bombardments and indiscriminate firing in Gonzaga, Cagayan.</p><p>She told ANC, however, they did not push through with their activity after they were blocked at a checkpoint that bore streamers tagging her as a terrorist.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><iframe allow="autoplay; fullscreen" frameBorder="0" height="100%" id="ivsplayer01" scrolling="no" src="https://player.ivideosmart.com/ivsplayer/v4/dist/html/iframe-src.html?iframeid=ivsplayer01&amp;key=e8c22c015ca9eafa76f1e3edfa03c603&amp;spid=3001339&amp;vid=1949121" width="100%"></iframe></figure><div class="iwantbar">Watch more in <a href="//www.iwantv.com.ph/">iWantv</a> or <a href="//tfc.tv/">TFC.tv</a></div><p>“Nung pagdating namin sa entrance na ng Barangay Sta. Clara where we’re supposed to conduct community outreach, there was a small group, mga--what do you call them? Mga groups na supposedly employed by the (National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict) kasi sila yung mga sumurrender ‘no, nagpa-clear sila ng pangalan, and so on and so forth.”</p><p>“Tapos may tarpaulin doon sa parang makeshift checkpoint na ginawa nila, na may tarpaulin ng mukha ko, daw, kasi ‘di ko nakikita dahil I was on 3rd or 4th na sasakayan and malabo yung mata ko, wala ‘kong salamin. Tapos merong isa pang tarpaulin ng isang kasama din namin, who is a 4th nominee of Anakpawis, si Isabelo Adviento.”</p><p>“So diyan nakalagay doon na parang, terorista kami. Tapos, isinisigaw sila na ayaw namin ng Karapatan dito! Ayaw namin kayo dito! Something to that effect,” Mesina related.</p><p>“Kaya so, nakiusap yung ilang barangay officials who were there na wag na lang kaming tumuloy kasi baka daw magkainitan nga naman, dahil hindi nila macontrol yung situation dahil nga yung mga nandoon daw na humarang sa amin are not actually from that area,” she said.</p><p>Mesina said her group then turned back and went to Aparri to discuss the rescheduling of their outreach program. She was arrested by policemen as they were getting dinner at an eatery later that day.</p><p>PCapt. Isabelita Gano of the Cagayan Valley police public information office said the arrest of Mesina was a result of the joint operation of the government’s various intelligence units.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><iframe allow="autoplay; fullscreen" frameBorder="0" height="100%" id="ivsplayer01" scrolling="no" src="https://player.ivideosmart.com/ivsplayer/v4/dist/html/iframe-src.html?iframeid=ivsplayer01&amp;key=e8c22c015ca9eafa76f1e3edfa03c603&amp;spid=3001339&amp;vid=1949107" width="100%"></iframe></figure><div class="iwantbar">Watch more in <a href="//www.iwantv.com.ph/">iWantv</a> or <a href="//tfc.tv/">TFC.tv</a></div><p>“Joint operation po kasi Sir. Bale marami po talagang intelligence na nandoon po. Andon po ang Regional Intelligence Division 2, andoon po ang MICO, ito pong Military Intelligence Company. Andoon din po ang 77th (Infantry Division).</p><p>Asked if the NTF-ELCAC was involved, Gano said, “Yes, Sir, and automatic po na meron po yung NTF-ELCAC po doon Sir.”</p><p>She said that they implemented the arrest warrant against Mesina because it wasn’t removed from their electronic database.</p><p>“Nung ibinigay po nung kanyang lawyer ‘no, na si Atty. Tadili, ay nag-inquire po ang kapulisan Sir sa Tagum, sa Capalong Municipal Police Station kung saan nagstart o sila po yung nagfile ng murder sa kanila, dito po kay Agnes, so, nung nag-inform po sila doon, eto pong Capalong Municipal Station.”</p><p>“And according po sa chief of police is nag-inquire din po sila sa court ng Tagum, municipal trial court, na kung saan po nalaman, doon pa lang po nila nalaman Sir na ito po pala ay <a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/07/22/21/tagum-court-dismisses-criminal-charge-activitists" target="_blank">na-dismiss</a> na ‘tong taong ito.”</p><p>“Kasi according po Sir sa atin po, sa pakikipanayam ko rin po kahapon, doon po sa e-warrant, yung humahawak po ng mga warrant of arrest, ay according po sa kanila hindi po mababago yan at hindi po talaga yan maaalis sa kanilang system kung hindi po mismo yung tao na suspect ang pupunta doon at magbibigay po ng copy ng dismissed case po niya,” she explained.</p><p>Gano said, however, that they are already looking into any possible errors made by cops in Mesina’s arrest. </p><p>She also said that there are no streamers red-tagging anyone at checkpoints in the province.</p><p>“Wala po, wala po nakalagay doon Sir na streamer doon po mga checkpoints. Ang mga nakalagay lang po doon Sir is yung mga karapatan po ng mga motorist.”</p><p>“Eto lang po is may nagbigay nga po ng information na nandito lang po itong si Mesina at may standing warrant of arrest po siya na murder so dahil sa wanted person po siya , kailangan po namin hulihin yun Sir,” Gano added.</p><div><strong>--ANC, 2 March 2022</strong><br/> </div>

Plainclothes cops in Cagayan province arrested a human rights defender on Monday because they weren’t informed that the murder case against her had already been dismissed, a police spokesperson said.