MANILA, Philippines – A Filipino who admitted conducting surveillance activities for a Philippine police task force linked to human rights violations has been deported back to Manila.
Regor Cadag Aguilar arrived in Manila on Wednesday, February 17, accompanied by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers.
Aguilar was arrested on January 5, in Union City in the San Francisco Bay Area.
The 42-year-old Filipino had overstayed the visitor's visa he used to enter the United States 15 years ago, leading to his placement in removal proceedings.
According to an ICE press release, Aguilar had admitted working as a surveillance agent for a law enforcement task force in the Philippines from 1998 to 2001.
The task force was allegedly behind illegal activities, such as the disappearance of opposition political figures.
"While he maintained he was unaware of the task force’s illegal activities at the time, Aguilar testified he knew that one of his surveillance targets disappeared and was presumed dead. He further testified that his superiors informed him that other members of the task force relied on his surveillance to abduct and murder a political figure," the news release read.
The ICE release also said that Aguilar had testified hearing his superiors order members to torture abducted individuals.
A San Francisco immigration judge ordered Aguilar's deportation in 2010.
Although US authorities did not provide details on the task force Aguilar had been part of, Human Rights Watch (HRW) said the task force's "pattern of abuses" was similar to the Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Task Force (PAOCTF) created in 1998 by then-president Joseph Estrada, and later disbanded by former president Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo in 2001.
HRW Asia researcher Carlos Conde said that the PAOCTF had been allegedly involved in warrantless arrests, kidnapping and murder, and illegal spying over journalists, judges, and rival politicians.
The HRW called on the Philippine government to investigate and prosecute officials implicated in past human rights abuses, pointing to Aguilar's case as an example of how alleged human rights violators evade persecution.
"The fact that Aguilar was living freely in the US is a reminder of how elements of the Philippine security forces implicated in serious human rights abuses routinely evade prosecution. Philippine authorities should use the evidence that prompted Aguilar’s deportation to investigate the allegations against him and his fellow officers," HRW said.
The group also called on the winner of the May 2016 polls to prioritize justice for human rights violations. – Rappler.com