Lawyers denounce terror financing case vs 鈥榬ights defenders鈥�
The Department of Justice. (Photo by RYAN LEAGOGO / 黑料社)
MANILA, Philippines — Financing terrorism is a “dangerous accusation” against the 16 individuals, four of them nuns, who were indicted on Monday for allegedly violating the Terrorism Financing Prevention and Suppression Act of 2022.
The (UPLM) issued the statement on Tuesday, saying the nonbailable offense of providing funds to the Communist Party of the Philippines and New Peoples’ Army (CPP-NPA) was “aimed at suppressing and harassing human rights defenders.”
The nuns are members of the in the Northern Mindanao Region (RPM-NMR).
On Monday, the Department of Justice said that “probable cause exists to indict 16 respondents for making funds available” to the CPP-NPA.
The offense carries a penalty of up to 40 years of imprisonment and a fine that ranges from P500,000 to P1 million.
Article continues after this advertisementThe UPLM calls itself a “staunch ally” of the RMP-NMR for its “defense and assertion of the rights of the rural poor communities in the face of development aggression, climate change, and sectoral discrimination.”
Article continues after this advertisementThe group pointed out that the projects of the RMP-NMR had gone through the “rigorous processes of selection, monitoring and auditing by its respective donors, such as the European Union, the United Nations, and many others.”
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