Human rights group Karapatan on Sunday slammed government troops for allegedly raping 10 women, including seven minors since President Benigno Aquino III took office in June 2010.
“Soldiers do not only kill; they rape children too. Amid the rising political killings under the Aquino regime, 10 women have been raped by state forces; and seven of them are minors,” Karapatan secretary-general Cristina Palabay said.
“Soldiers and members of the Civilian Armed Forces Geographical Unit undressed girls, as young as 12 years old, and raped them. None of the perpetrators of the documented rape cases have been arrested or brought to jail,” she added.
One case, in particular, involved a 14-year-old lumad girl “Tess” who was raped twice by soldiers belonging to the 68th Infantry Battalion-Bravo Company stationed at Talaingod in Davao del Norte, Palabay said.
Palabay said the alleged rapists—Private First Class Stanly Revil, Private First Class Joffrey Galot, and Private John Banilla—all pleaded not guilty before a military court-martial.
The Philippine National Police has also filed criminal charges against the three soldiers.
The youngest victim, according to Palabay, was 12-year-old Nini who was allegedly raped by an aide of an officer from the 2nd Infantry Division.
“We believe there are more rape victims of soldiers and paramilitary forces but they are afraid and ashamed to report or file a complaint,” Palabay said.
“These heinous acts are not isolated cases that can be attributed to individual ‘bad eggs’ in the military. The act of rape serves as a terror tactic to shame and silence women, their families and the community. This barbarism should be condemned, and military officials who employ this tactic in their counterinsurgency program should be punished,” she added.