Philippine Court of Appeals upholds dismissal of rebellion case vs Ampatuan patriarch, 23 others

CA upholds dismissal of rebellion case vs Ampatuan patriarch, 23 others
Tetch Torres, INQUIRER.net, January 2, 2012

MANILA, Philippines—The Court of Appeals upheld the decision of the Quezon City Regional Trial Court in dismissing the rebellion case filed against Ampatuan clan patriarch Andal Ampatuan Sr. and 23 others.

Andal Ampatuan Sr. INQUIRER FILEPHOTO

In a 63-page decision penned by Associate Justice Elihu Ybanez, the appeals court said the prosecutor could not file a case in court for lack of probable cause “in hope that some credible evidence might later turn up during trial.”

Aside from Andal Sr., his co-accused include suspended Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) Governor Zaldy Ampatuan, Datu Akmad Tato Ampatuan, Datu Anwar Ampatuan and Datu Sajid Islam Ampatuan;

Kusain Akmad Sakilan, Jovel Vista Lopez, Rommy Gimba Mamay, Sammy Duyo Villanueva, Ibrahim Tukya Abdulkadir, Samil Manalao Mindo, Goldo B. Ampatuan, Amaikugao Obab Dalgan, Billy Cabaya Gabriel Jr., Abdulla Kaliangat Ampatuan, Moneb Samir Ibrahim, Umpa Ugka Yarya, Manding Abdulkadir, Dekay Idra Ulama, Kapid Gabriel Cabaya, Koka Batong Managilid, Sammy Ganda Macabuat, Duca Lendungan Amban, and Akmad Abdullah Ulilisen.

Government prosecutors claim that the Ampatuans and their co-accused conspired with each other and “commanded their followers to rise publicly and take arms against the Republic for the purpose of removing allegiance to the government.”

But the court, in its order said the prosecution failed to present proof that all the accused rose publicly and took arms against the Government “for the purpose of removing from the allegiance to said Government or its laws, the territory of the Philippine Islands or any part thereof, of any body of land, naval or other armed forces, depriving the Chief Executive or the Legislature, wholly or partially, of any of their powers or prerogatives,” as explained under Article 134 of the Revised Penal Code.

“There exists no probable cause to indict and hold under detention the accused for rebellion. Accordingly, the instant case is hereby dismissed and the accused movant/s are hereby released from further detention unless they are held by a court of law for other lawful causes,” the court said.

The appeals court echoed the findings of the QCRTC Branch 77 Judge Vivencio Baclig saying that none of the protesters in the Nov. 2, 2009 mass action were armed and it was conducted in full view of the police and military.

The appeals court added that the clashes and gunfires mentioned by the prosecutors in their complaint occurred after Dec. 9, 2009 or after the complaint for rebellion has been filed thereby “casting a serious constitutionality infirmity upon the information since the facts constitutive of the crime of rebellion took place subsequent to the indictment.

It added that the fact that the government has dug up caches of firearms and ammunitions in the Ampatuan properties has no bearing since there was no proof that it was used against the government.

The decision was concurred in by Associate Justices Fernanda Lampas-Peralta and Francisco Acosta.