(Quote from Kudeta Rigoberto Tiglao, KUD
ETA, PCIJ, 1990: It was inevitable that the Cultural Revolution would also affect the PMA. For one thing, the Academy had virtually the same liberal-democratic educational framework as the University of the Philippines, the activist breeding ground. This explains why many rebel officers come from three classes — 1971,1972 and 1973. These officers entered the Academy from 1967 to 1970, the period when the upheaval in the political consciousness of the youth occurred. )
Moved by the bloody takeover of a hotel in Mumbai, we asked Victorina legal counsel Atty. Trixie Angeles to revisit the Magdalo takeover of Manila Pen almost a year after. Atty. Trixie Cruz-Angeles represents several officers of the Magdalo group and some officers charged with mutiny for the February 2006 Marine Stand-off incident. She was at the courtroom on November 29, 2008, representing Marine Captain Nicanor Faeldon. This is her account of the events of that day.
By: Atty.Trixie Angeles
November 29, 2007. I was out of the house before 7am. I was scheduled to present evidence in the case of People versus Maestrecampo et al, in Branch 148 of the Makati Regional Trial Court. The presiding judge of the court, Judge Oscar Pimentel had castigated me once for arriving late for a hearing on one of my Motions. It was not a mistake I wanted to make again.
Together with me, as I drove, was my assistant, Eric Caraan. I usually go to my hearings alone, but I needed Eric to help me bring down the television set and the DVD player I needed to present my video evidence.
Fortunately, it was easy to park that day. I did not bring down the TV set yet, and had to ask the parking boys to watch the car closely. Eric and I went up to make arrangements with the court personnel about where to plug in the TV and DVD player, which I was going to use only after I had presented my witness, Gen. Danilo Lim of the Philippine Army and former Commander of the First Scout Ranger Regiment.
Gen. Lim was to testify on the Oakwood agreement where the government promised that only the core group of five officers, Lt (sg) now Senator Antonio Trillanes IV, Lt. (sg) James Layug, Cpt. Gerardo Gambala, Cpt. Milo Maestrecampo and Cpt. Gary Alejano were to be charged criminally. All the rest of the officers, including my client, Cpt. Nicanor Faeldon were to be released and reinstated in the service.
At 8:10am, I was going over my notes rather nervously. I had requested from Judge Pimentel a few minutes to speak to my witness who was coming from Camp Capinpin. The hearing was to start at 9am and Gen. Lim had not yet arrived. Cpt. Gary Alejano then arrived and informed me that my client was separated from the group and taken to Camp Aguinaldo instead of the Makati RTC. I made frantic phone calls to the custodians of the Marine Brig in Fort Bonifacio. I then told the commander that my client has a hearing in the Regional Trial Court. I was then informed that my client also had a court martial hearing for his 2005 alleged escape, at the same date and time.
I was, to say the least, very, very angry. Cpt. Faeldon’s failure to show up at trial would have made matters complicated. Gen. Lim was HIS witness after all. Even worse, the Judge Advocate General’s Office knew that I would not be able to attend to the court martial (we had no notice) and could forcibly arraign my client without his counsel of choice. JAGO was trying to do this to prevent this offense for prescribing (lapsing).
I sought a final recourse and sent a text message to the media informing them of JAGO’s intent to forcibly arraign Cpt. Faeldon.
Gen. Lim arrived at ten minutes to nine. Judge Pimentel graciously allowed me to use his chambers to interview the general for his testimony. It wasn’t enough time. At five minutes after nine, Judge Pimentel insisted it was time to begin the hearing.
As I entered the courtroom, I noticed that Cpt. Faeldon had arrived. I introduced him to Gen. Lim. Cpt. Faeldon then took me aside and explained what had happened. JAGO realized its mistake when media people started calling them up. JAGO officers immediately rescheduled the hearing without prejudice to my client.
One problem solved, I had to focus on the hearing. I noticed former VP Teofisto Guingona among the personalities in the courtroom. I went over to say hi. His wife, Tita Ruth, was my cooking teacher for many summers.
On direct examination, Gen. Lim was a dream witness. He went through the events of Oakwood incident, clearly described all persons involved, and explained the terms of the agreement. I could not have asked for anything more. After his testimony, Judge Pimentel ordered a recess of ten minutes.
Still high from the excellent testimony provided by Gen. Lim, I left my seat to s
peak to Cpt. Faeldon. On my way to him, VP Guingona shook my hand and congratulated me on Gen. Lim’s testimony. I introduced him to my client. Shortly thereafter, Cpt. Faeldon and I stepped out of the courtroom. As I was speaking to him, I noticed that the hallway was full of soldiers. I am used to tight security, and there were also many spectators inside the courtroom, including some media people who managed to get inside due to the crush of people who were in the hallway, so I paid little attention to it. In mid conversation, I heard the judge bang his gavel. I have to go in, I told Cpt. Faeldon. Before I went in, I looked back and saw he was talking to Cpt. Gary Alejano. I wanted him inside for Gen. Lim’s cross-examination, but I thought he would follow.
It was the last time I would see him.
When I got inside the courtroom, Gen. Lim was already on the witness stand. And there was a crush of people in the aisle. As I tried to make my way to my seat in the counsel’s table in front, I heard someone say, “Walang gagalaw!” I saw one of the officers who was standing in the aisle go up to Gen. Lim and grab his arm, half pulling him to his feet.
Pandemonium. Not a single person reacted as officers and soldiers left the courtroom en masse. Judge Pimentel then started asking, “What is going on? Where are they taking the witness?” Gen. Lim’s lawyer, who was present in the courtroom, was then ordered by Judge Pimentel to see to his client. And the courtroom was soon empty of all but the lawyers, some other accused and a few spectators. I went to the door, but outside, most people were making for the elevators and stairs.
Soon a soldier barred me and said he had orders from one of my clients to make sure I wouldn’t follow. I asked, “Sinong kliyente?” He looked at me blankly and just said, “Ma’m napagutusan lang po.”
I went back inside the courtroom. Cpt. Baloloy, one of the accused who would later plead guilty, then started shouting, "Ginawa na naman nila! Ano na naman yang ginawa nila!” He continued cursing in this vein for about a minute or two before one of the other officers calmed him down. Cpt. Ashley Asedillo gave Cpt. Baloloy and me a glass of water. Only then did I realize that I was hyperventilating. Weird.
Judge Pimentel then declared another recess.
Recovering my own senses, the court sheriff and I ran to the stairs to find out if we could still get the lowdown from some of the accused. This time, no one stopped me. At the lobby, we were informed that a march had begun. I went to my car and my watch-your-car boy told me that people came from different places and converged in the parking lot. Confused, I asked the sheriff, “Sama tayo?” He said we should go back and check on the hearing, since we weren’t adjourned yet.
Back in court, we continued with the hearing with Judge Pimentel ordering the prosecutors to conduct an investigation into what just happened. Someone texted one of the defense lawyers, Teddy Te, who informed us that the accused were now marching in the streets.
11am. We adjourned. I ran to my car, taking off my high heels in the parking lot. The radio was on. In my car, the phone rang. My client had borrowed someone’s cell and called to tell me he was alright. Before I could scream at him to get his ass back to the Marine Brig, he said he was going back to Fort Bonifacio. He would just see the march through. I told him I would go to the Marine Brig and meet him there or to call me again if he needed a ride. In the meantime, I would also check on my other clients who were at the Brig, Lts. Junnibert Tubo and Edwin Duetao, both of the Philippine Marines. I figured they might know what was going on.
I was barred from entering the Marine Compound. While I was claiming attorney’s privileges, a very nice captain tried to patiently explain to me that they were on red alert and only organic personnel and residents would be allowed inside. I fought, I argued, I pretended to kick one of the APCs that was barring my car, ultimately, I ended up on radio. Media people were everywhere. It was a matter of time before they caught sight of the one-sided argument.
Three interviews later, I got a call through to one of the guards at the brig. I found out that the lieutenants were all right but they were on lockdown. I told them I would be back tomorrow.
It was one pm when I left Fort Bonifacio. I went back to Makati City Hall to pick up Eric. We then tried to go to the Manila Penn but all roads were barred. I went home and waited by the phone. I forgot to eat.
When I turned on the television set, one of the first persons I recognized was Argee Guevarra, a friend from law school. He was several batches ahead of me, but was a working student, so he finished just a year ahead. Argee had been previously detained together with Prof. Randy David for the 2006 Fort Bonifacio Marine Stand-off incident, but was released twenty four hours later. I knew Argee was one of Sen. Trillanes’ lawyers, but we never ended up visiting our clients together. Somehow I always missed his visits.
But there he was. I couldn’t get through any of his phone numbers in my phone directory, so I just watched the events unfold on television and asked questions of the media persons who also called me for interviews. A few days later, I would visit him in jail. One week after that, we became law partners. That partnership continues to today.
What follows are based on narrations made in Fr. Robert Reyes’ book, Prisons: the Manila Penn and Beyond. The events narrated here do not cover the press conference or other events that were duly covered by the media on that day
Herman Tiu Laurel, a columnist for the Tribune writes:
“Just a level above me a discussion was going on. Later I was to learn that this was where some of the Bishops and political personalities were having a dialogue with the media… I was feeling pangs of hunger and burgers were sent over to the hotel doors, but they wouldn’t be let in.
“It was somewhere mid afternoon when I started to venture farther out from that mezzanine area to the function rooms where the rea excitement was going on. A table had been set up blocking the hallway to the function reooms where Gen. Danilo Lim and Senator Antonio trillanes IV had set up their center. A horde of media reporters where clumped just in front of the small table blocking the way and a number of young officers controlled the ingress and egress through that small path, opening and closing the small gap between the wall and the table edge. A telephone line had been strung out near the table and media reporters would use it alternately and sometimes for interviews with protest and other types of personalities that would come and go.
“There was no keeping track of time anymore as the excitement accelerated after every hour passed. Media was getting regular updates from the staff of Gen. Lim and Sen. Trillanes, but at one point interviews were minimized as the intensity of discussion among the protest leaders increased. That’s when I remember asking sectoral representative JV Bautista to pitch in with the interviews to spare Sen. Trillanes the constant requests from the media for Trillanes to come out of this command center. Atty. JV obliged and faced the media’s many questions, including how he came to be at the Manila Penn on this historic occasion.
“… Soon after … events started to take a turn for the worse. All I remember was the commotion and media people talking of an imminent assault by the SWAT teams of the PNP. I walked back and forth between the end of the hallway and the command center hoping to find out more, but we could catch a whiff of tear gas already. The discussion in the command center was frenzy.
“It was at this point that Sen. Trillanes ordered that all civilians and media people be evacuated. I think many of us civilians and media people knew what would be in store for the young officers and Gen. Lim if they were left alone to the trigger happy commanders of the PNP too eager to follow the orders of their bloodthirsty commander-in-chief. Memories of retired Air Force Captain Paniflo Villaruel and Navy Lt. Ricardo Catchillar killed in cold blood on orders of Gloria Arroyo attack dog and DOTC Secretary Leandro Mendoza, on November 11, 2003 at the NAIA’s old control tower was still fresh on our minds.
“At that point I stepped up to face Gen. Danilo Lim and Sen. Antonio Trilalnes IV that we, the civilians and media people would not leave if they would not leave with us. Gen. Lim turned to Sen. Trillanes and said, “We cannot let any harm come to the civilians.” After a moment of pause, Sen. Trillanes made the announcement to everyone that:”We will march out.” I didn’t know that there was already pandemonium outside the command center, but a door opened the cloud of teargas was already thick in the hallway. At that point we still weren’t sure that everything would end up peacefully…
“… We were being herded down the mezzanine unto the stairs, SWAT men in gas masks and full battle regalia barking instructions. WE were finally told to stop at the stairs, all of us packed side-by-side like sardines. I finally got a view of the familiar Manila Pen glass front entrance, in the dim light I could make out an APC amidst shattered glass panels, and a machine atop it swinging left to right – I thought: ”How stupid these cops are.”
“There we were on the stairs, media people and other civilians. I couldn’t see the young officers and Gen. Lim, but I could see some figures down at the lobby being moved about. We were kept waiting for sometime at the stairs. Then we saw and heard Ces Drilon protesting the treatment media was getting and in loud voices questioning the officers. They were trying to handcuff some media people at the bottom of the steps, but everything was taking so long I thought I’d go down and argue the case too; but one officer quickly grabbed my hands and put on these plastic cuffs. I was led out to the police bus and my instinct as a street parliamentarian prompted me to raise both hands to show the cuff and shout protests against this shackling of freedom of expression and of the press.
“It was already night when we were being led out of the hotel lobby and through the broken glass doors and panels out to the buses on the driveway of the Pen. Camera flashes burst everywhere and TV lens pointed at us from every direction. I was thrust into one bus carrying media people. The other civilians were led away in other buses. Gen. Lim and Sen. Trillanes in another we heard. I was thankful for the rest in the bus while waiting for it to be filled, and I fell silent from sheer exhaustion while the fellow media people in the bus were now all thrusting their handcuffed arms out the bus windows for the media still free to do their jobs to document. I lost track of the time as the long wait to fill the bus and count the numbers went on.
“It must have been very late into the night when the buses started
to roll towards Bicutan where we were to be “processed,” but that leg of the journey was also unbearably long…”
Mr. Herman Tiu Laurel was later transferred to Crame in the early morning hours of the 30th of November 2008, together with Attys. JV Bautista and Argee Guevarra, Fr. Robert Reyes, former UP President Dodong Nemenzo and Bishop Julio Labayen. These civilians were released after two weeks when the court found no probable cause to hold them for the crime of rebellion.
ETA, PCIJ, 1990: It was inevitable that the Cultural Revolution would also affect the PMA. For one thing, the Academy had virtually the same liberal-democratic educational framework as the University of the Philippines, the activist breeding ground. This explains why many rebel officers come from three classes — 1971,1972 and 1973. These officers entered the Academy from 1967 to 1970, the period when the upheaval in the political consciousness of the youth occurred. )Moved by the bloody takeover of a hotel in Mumbai, we asked Victorina legal counsel Atty. Trixie Angeles to revisit the Magdalo takeover of Manila Pen almost a year after. Atty. Trixie Cruz-Angeles represents several officers of the Magdalo group and some officers charged with mutiny for the February 2006 Marine Stand-off incident. She was at the courtroom on November 29, 2008, representing Marine Captain Nicanor Faeldon. This is her account of the events of that day.
By: Atty.Trixie Angeles
November 29, 2007. I was out of the house before 7am. I was scheduled to present evidence in the case of People versus Maestrecampo et al, in Branch 148 of the Makati Regional Trial Court. The presiding judge of the court, Judge Oscar Pimentel had castigated me once for arriving late for a hearing on one of my Motions. It was not a mistake I wanted to make again.
Together with me, as I drove, was my assistant, Eric Caraan. I usually go to my hearings alone, but I needed Eric to help me bring down the television set and the DVD player I needed to present my video evidence.
Fortunately, it was easy to park that day. I did not bring down the TV set yet, and had to ask the parking boys to watch the car closely. Eric and I went up to make arrangements with the court personnel about where to plug in the TV and DVD player, which I was going to use only after I had presented my witness, Gen. Danilo Lim of the Philippine Army and former Commander of the First Scout Ranger Regiment.
Gen. Lim was to testify on the Oakwood agreement where the government promised that only the core group of five officers, Lt (sg) now Senator Antonio Trillanes IV, Lt. (sg) James Layug, Cpt. Gerardo Gambala, Cpt. Milo Maestrecampo and Cpt. Gary Alejano were to be charged criminally. All the rest of the officers, including my client, Cpt. Nicanor Faeldon were to be released and reinstated in the service.
At 8:10am, I was going over my notes rather nervously. I had requested from Judge Pimentel a few minutes to speak to my witness who was coming from Camp Capinpin. The hearing was to start at 9am and Gen. Lim had not yet arrived. Cpt. Gary Alejano then arrived and informed me that my client was separated from the group and taken to Camp Aguinaldo instead of the Makati RTC. I made frantic phone calls to the custodians of the Marine Brig in Fort Bonifacio. I then told the commander that my client has a hearing in the Regional Trial Court. I was then informed that my client also had a court martial hearing for his 2005 alleged escape, at the same date and time.
I was, to say the least, very, very angry. Cpt. Faeldon’s failure to show up at trial would have made matters complicated. Gen. Lim was HIS witness after all. Even worse, the Judge Advocate General’s Office knew that I would not be able to attend to the court martial (we had no notice) and could forcibly arraign my client without his counsel of choice. JAGO was trying to do this to prevent this offense for prescribing (lapsing).
I sought a final recourse and sent a text message to the media informing them of JAGO’s intent to forcibly arraign Cpt. Faeldon.
Gen. Lim arrived at ten minutes to nine. Judge Pimentel graciously allowed me to use his chambers to interview the general for his testimony. It wasn’t enough time. At five minutes after nine, Judge Pimentel insisted it was time to begin the hearing.
As I entered the courtroom, I noticed that Cpt. Faeldon had arrived. I introduced him to Gen. Lim. Cpt. Faeldon then took me aside and explained what had happened. JAGO realized its mistake when media people started calling them up. JAGO officers immediately rescheduled the hearing without prejudice to my client.
One problem solved, I had to focus on the hearing. I noticed former VP Teofisto Guingona among the personalities in the courtroom. I went over to say hi. His wife, Tita Ruth, was my cooking teacher for many summers.
On direct examination, Gen. Lim was a dream witness. He went through the events of Oakwood incident, clearly described all persons involved, and explained the terms of the agreement. I could not have asked for anything more. After his testimony, Judge Pimentel ordered a recess of ten minutes.
Still high from the excellent testimony provided by Gen. Lim, I left my seat to s
peak to Cpt. Faeldon. On my way to him, VP Guingona shook my hand and congratulated me on Gen. Lim’s testimony. I introduced him to my client. Shortly thereafter, Cpt. Faeldon and I stepped out of the courtroom. As I was speaking to him, I noticed that the hallway was full of soldiers. I am used to tight security, and there were also many spectators inside the courtroom, including some media people who managed to get inside due to the crush of people who were in the hallway, so I paid little attention to it. In mid conversation, I heard the judge bang his gavel. I have to go in, I told Cpt. Faeldon. Before I went in, I looked back and saw he was talking to Cpt. Gary Alejano. I wanted him inside for Gen. Lim’s cross-examination, but I thought he would follow.It was the last time I would see him.
When I got inside the courtroom, Gen. Lim was already on the witness stand. And there was a crush of people in the aisle. As I tried to make my way to my seat in the counsel’s table in front, I heard someone say, “Walang gagalaw!” I saw one of the officers who was standing in the aisle go up to Gen. Lim and grab his arm, half pulling him to his feet.
Pandemonium. Not a single person reacted as officers and soldiers left the courtroom en masse. Judge Pimentel then started asking, “What is going on? Where are they taking the witness?” Gen. Lim’s lawyer, who was present in the courtroom, was then ordered by Judge Pimentel to see to his client. And the courtroom was soon empty of all but the lawyers, some other accused and a few spectators. I went to the door, but outside, most people were making for the elevators and stairs.
Soon a soldier barred me and said he had orders from one of my clients to make sure I wouldn’t follow. I asked, “Sinong kliyente?” He looked at me blankly and just said, “Ma’m napagutusan lang po.”
I went back inside the courtroom. Cpt. Baloloy, one of the accused who would later plead guilty, then started shouting, "Ginawa na naman nila! Ano na naman yang ginawa nila!” He continued cursing in this vein for about a minute or two before one of the other officers calmed him down. Cpt. Ashley Asedillo gave Cpt. Baloloy and me a glass of water. Only then did I realize that I was hyperventilating. Weird.
Judge Pimentel then declared another recess.
Recovering my own senses, the court sheriff and I ran to the stairs to find out if we could still get the lowdown from some of the accused. This time, no one stopped me. At the lobby, we were informed that a march had begun. I went to my car and my watch-your-car boy told me that people came from different places and converged in the parking lot. Confused, I asked the sheriff, “Sama tayo?” He said we should go back and check on the hearing, since we weren’t adjourned yet.
Back in court, we continued with the hearing with Judge Pimentel ordering the prosecutors to conduct an investigation into what just happened. Someone texted one of the defense lawyers, Teddy Te, who informed us that the accused were now marching in the streets.
11am. We adjourned. I ran to my car, taking off my high heels in the parking lot. The radio was on. In my car, the phone rang. My client had borrowed someone’s cell and called to tell me he was alright. Before I could scream at him to get his ass back to the Marine Brig, he said he was going back to Fort Bonifacio. He would just see the march through. I told him I would go to the Marine Brig and meet him there or to call me again if he needed a ride. In the meantime, I would also check on my other clients who were at the Brig, Lts. Junnibert Tubo and Edwin Duetao, both of the Philippine Marines. I figured they might know what was going on.
I was barred from entering the Marine Compound. While I was claiming attorney’s privileges, a very nice captain tried to patiently explain to me that they were on red alert and only organic personnel and residents would be allowed inside. I fought, I argued, I pretended to kick one of the APCs that was barring my car, ultimately, I ended up on radio. Media people were everywhere. It was a matter of time before they caught sight of the one-sided argument.
Three interviews later, I got a call through to one of the guards at the brig. I found out that the lieutenants were all right but they were on lockdown. I told them I would be back tomorrow.
It was one pm when I left Fort Bonifacio. I went back to Makati City Hall to pick up Eric. We then tried to go to the Manila Penn but all roads were barred. I went home and waited by the phone. I forgot to eat.
When I turned on the television set, one of the first persons I recognized was Argee Guevarra, a friend from law school. He was several batches ahead of me, but was a working student, so he finished just a year ahead. Argee had been previously detained together with Prof. Randy David for the 2006 Fort Bonifacio Marine Stand-off incident, but was released twenty four hours later. I knew Argee was one of Sen. Trillanes’ lawyers, but we never ended up visiting our clients together. Somehow I always missed his visits.
But there he was. I couldn’t get through any of his phone numbers in my phone directory, so I just watched the events unfold on television and asked questions of the media persons who also called me for interviews. A few days later, I would visit him in jail. One week after that, we became law partners. That partnership continues to today.
What follows are based on narrations made in Fr. Robert Reyes’ book, Prisons: the Manila Penn and Beyond. The events narrated here do not cover the press conference or other events that were duly covered by the media on that day
Herman Tiu Laurel, a columnist for the Tribune writes:
“Just a level above me a discussion was going on. Later I was to learn that this was where some of the Bishops and political personalities were having a dialogue with the media… I was feeling pangs of hunger and burgers were sent over to the hotel doors, but they wouldn’t be let in.
“It was somewhere mid afternoon when I started to venture farther out from that mezzanine area to the function rooms where the rea excitement was going on. A table had been set up blocking the hallway to the function reooms where Gen. Danilo Lim and Senator Antonio trillanes IV had set up their center. A horde of media reporters where clumped just in front of the small table blocking the way and a number of young officers controlled the ingress and egress through that small path, opening and closing the small gap between the wall and the table edge. A telephone line had been strung out near the table and media reporters would use it alternately and sometimes for interviews with protest and other types of personalities that would come and go.
“There was no keeping track of time anymore as the excitement accelerated after every hour passed. Media was getting regular updates from the staff of Gen. Lim and Sen. Trillanes, but at one point interviews were minimized as the intensity of discussion among the protest leaders increased. That’s when I remember asking sectoral representative JV Bautista to pitch in with the interviews to spare Sen. Trillanes the constant requests from the media for Trillanes to come out of this command center. Atty. JV obliged and faced the media’s many questions, including how he came to be at the Manila Penn on this historic occasion.
“… Soon after … events started to take a turn for the worse. All I remember was the commotion and media people talking of an imminent assault by the SWAT teams of the PNP. I walked back and forth between the end of the hallway and the command center hoping to find out more, but we could catch a whiff of tear gas already. The discussion in the command center was frenzy.
“It was at this point that Sen. Trillanes ordered that all civilians and media people be evacuated. I think many of us civilians and media people knew what would be in store for the young officers and Gen. Lim if they were left alone to the trigger happy commanders of the PNP too eager to follow the orders of their bloodthirsty commander-in-chief. Memories of retired Air Force Captain Paniflo Villaruel and Navy Lt. Ricardo Catchillar killed in cold blood on orders of Gloria Arroyo attack dog and DOTC Secretary Leandro Mendoza, on November 11, 2003 at the NAIA’s old control tower was still fresh on our minds.
“At that point I stepped up to face Gen. Danilo Lim and Sen. Antonio Trilalnes IV that we, the civilians and media people would not leave if they would not leave with us. Gen. Lim turned to Sen. Trillanes and said, “We cannot let any harm come to the civilians.” After a moment of pause, Sen. Trillanes made the announcement to everyone that:”We will march out.” I didn’t know that there was already pandemonium outside the command center, but a door opened the cloud of teargas was already thick in the hallway. At that point we still weren’t sure that everything would end up peacefully…
“… We were being herded down the mezzanine unto the stairs, SWAT men in gas masks and full battle regalia barking instructions. WE were finally told to stop at the stairs, all of us packed side-by-side like sardines. I finally got a view of the familiar Manila Pen glass front entrance, in the dim light I could make out an APC amidst shattered glass panels, and a machine atop it swinging left to right – I thought: ”How stupid these cops are.”
“There we were on the stairs, media people and other civilians. I couldn’t see the young officers and Gen. Lim, but I could see some figures down at the lobby being moved about. We were kept waiting for sometime at the stairs. Then we saw and heard Ces Drilon protesting the treatment media was getting and in loud voices questioning the officers. They were trying to handcuff some media people at the bottom of the steps, but everything was taking so long I thought I’d go down and argue the case too; but one officer quickly grabbed my hands and put on these plastic cuffs. I was led out to the police bus and my instinct as a street parliamentarian prompted me to raise both hands to show the cuff and shout protests against this shackling of freedom of expression and of the press.
“It was already night when we were being led out of the hotel lobby and through the broken glass doors and panels out to the buses on the driveway of the Pen. Camera flashes burst everywhere and TV lens pointed at us from every direction. I was thrust into one bus carrying media people. The other civilians were led away in other buses. Gen. Lim and Sen. Trillanes in another we heard. I was thankful for the rest in the bus while waiting for it to be filled, and I fell silent from sheer exhaustion while the fellow media people in the bus were now all thrusting their handcuffed arms out the bus windows for the media still free to do their jobs to document. I lost track of the time as the long wait to fill the bus and count the numbers went on.
“It must have been very late into the night when the buses started
to roll towards Bicutan where we were to be “processed,” but that leg of the journey was also unbearably long…”Mr. Herman Tiu Laurel was later transferred to Crame in the early morning hours of the 30th of November 2008, together with Attys. JV Bautista and Argee Guevarra, Fr. Robert Reyes, former UP President Dodong Nemenzo and Bishop Julio Labayen. These civilians were released after two weeks when the court found no probable cause to hold them for the crime of rebellion.
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