TRILLANES, 18 OTHER MUTINEERS APPLY FOR AMNESTY / ADMITS GUILT W/ EASE
[PHOTO - Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV takes an oath as he submits his application for amnesty at Camp Aguinaldo in Quezon City yesterday. BOY SANTOS]
MANILA, JANUARY 6, 2011 (STAR) By Alexis Romero - Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV yesterday applied for amnesty but maintained that he does not regret joining the uprisings against former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, whom he described as "the most corrupt president this country ever had."
Trillanes and 18 other Magdalo officers submitted their application forms to the Department of National Defense (DND) Ad Hoc Amnesty Committee at about 2 p.m. in Camp Aguinaldo, Quezon City.
Trillanes said their application for amnesty does not mean that they are pleading guilty to coup charges.
"It's (coup) a technical charge that has elements that needs to be proven… Let me be clear, we admit guilt as far as rising up against the most corrupt president this country ever had," the former Navy officer told reporters.
Trillanes, however, admitted that he and his companions in Magdalo broke some rules to pursue their advocacy.
"We are man enough to admit that we have broken rules in the pursuit of a moral cause and we faced it like men. We were imprisoned and the others were separated from the service so it's very easy for us to agree to that (admission of guilt)," he said.
Trillanes was referring to the amnesty requirement, which states that applicants should acknowledge that they violated the Constitution, the articles of war, or existing laws when they joined anti-government uprisings.
He said their decision to avail of the amnesty does not mean that the Arroyo administration has been absolved of its misdeeds.
When asked what he would tell Arroyo in case he meets her in a bicameral conference, Trillanes said: "We don't need to say anything to each other. Of course, we are civil. We are not barbarians so as much as we can, let's avoid such a meeting."
He said it feels good setting foot in the AFP General Headquarters as a senator.
"This (amnesty) is a milestone in our lives. This is a step towards ultimate freedom. We welcome this opportunity to serve this country once again," he said, adding that he is ready to push for laws that would benefit the military, including a measure raising soldiers' combat pay, updates on the National Defense Act, and amendments to the AFP Modernization Law.
A total of 39 former rebel soldiers, 19 of them officers, applied for amnesty yesterday, bringing the number of applicants to 58.
Trillanes was one of the leaders of the 2003 Oakwood mutiny where rebel soldiers decried the supposed corruption under the Arroyo regime.
The former Navy officer ran for senator under the Genuine Opposition ticket in the 2007 midterm elections and won. He, however, was not allowed to participate in sessions due to his pending coup case.
In 2007, Trillanes and other rebel soldiers walked out of a court hearing in Makati to stage what is now called the Manila Peninsula hotel siege.
Last month, he walked out of the Camp Crame Custodial Center after the Makati Regional Trial Court granted his petition for provisional freedom. He was placed under the custody of Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile.
The camp of Trillanes said the provisional liberty may have been granted due to the amnesty proclamation issued by Malacañang, which was signed by President Aquino last month, granting amnesty to military personnel accused of trying to oust the Arroyo administration.
The amnesty covers 378 officers and enlisted men and would remove the criminal liability of successful applicants.
Enlisted personnel with the rank of technical sergeant and below would be entitled to a reinstatement.
The Senate and the House of Representatives separately concurred with the amnesty proclamation last December.
Those who want to apply for amnesty must personally file their application with the DND within a period of 90 days.
The DND started accepting applications last Monday.
FROM THE DAILY TRIBUNE
Trillanes claims at ease in admitting mutiny guilt By Mario J. Mallari 01/06/2011
Admitting guilt for breaching the Constitution, which was required under Proclamation 75 that offered amnesty for soldiers who mutinied against former President Arroyo, was a breeze yesterday for former Navy lieutenant and now Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV who filed his application for pardon, along with 19 other Magdalo officers.
Questions were raised on how the accused mutineers will treat the guilt admission provision in the proclamation after former Scout Ranger head and retired Brig. Gen. Danilo Lim rejected availing himself of the offered pardon on condition of the admission of guilt but Trillanes said it was easy for his group yesterday to admit guilt and feel good about it.
"We are man enough to admit we have broken rules in the pursuit of morale cause and we faced it like men. We were jailed and the others were separated from the service. So, it's very easy for us to agree to that," Trillanes said.
"I feel good. This is actually a milestone in our lives, this is a step to our ultimate freedom and we welcome this opportunity to serve this country once again," said Trillanes.
Trillanes arrived at the Armed Forces of the Philippines Commissioned Officers Club (AFPCOC) in Camp Aguinaldo around 2 p.m. and submitted his readily filled up application before the Department of National Defense (DND) committee, headed by Undersecretary Honorio Azcueta.
Trillanes, wearing a red checkered polo, only signed and put his thumb mark on his application in the presence of the committee secretariat.
Last Tuesday, Aquino announced that Trillanes would file his application for amnesty amid
speculations that the amnesty offer will not likely taken up by most of the mutineers because of a provision in Proclamation 75 that requires admission of guilt.
Trillanes, however, did not express any apprehension over the admission of guilt clause of the amnesty proclamation.
He, however, clarified that his group did not admit guilt to the charge of coup d'etat or other charges filed against them in connection with the July 27, 2003 short-lived mutiny at the Oakwood Apartments and the November 2007 siege of the Manila Peninsula Hotel.
"I would like to qualify that we didn't admit to the charge of coup d'etat or anything filed against us, we believe that this is not necessary, even you cannot define whether that was a coup or not," explained Trillanes.
The former Navy lieutenant also stressed that such admission of guilt does not mean they regret what they have done.
"We should not twist that its something we regret, apologize for or absolving the last administration, definitely not," said Trillanes.
Aside from Trillanes, among the other Magdalo officers who filed their applications were former Marine Capt. Gary Alejano, one of the core leaders of the Magdalo group which include Trillanes, and Magdalo spokesman former Air Force Lt. Ashley Acedillo.
For his part, Alejano said their advocacy for good governance and war against corruption will continue.
"This is a fresh start for us, cases against us will be dropped and we can start anew and pursue reforms in our country whether in private or in public," said Alejano.
Twenty other rebel soldiers also filed their applications. As of press time yesterday, a total of 39 officers and enlisted personnel had submitted their documents before the DND committee, bring to 58 the total applications so far received by the Azcueta body.
Last Tuesday, 19 rebel soldiers, composed of four officers and 15 enlisted personnel, submitted their applications to the DND committee.
Trillanes was detained for spearheading the Oakwood Mutiny in 2003 and the Manila Peninsula incident in 2007.
The court granted Trillanes a temporary freedom before Christmas after Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile took custody of the lawmaker from his Camp Crame detention and transferred him to the Senate.
Trillanes led the Magdalo soldiers who took over the Oakwood Hotel in Makati City in 2003 while asking for the resignation of President Arroyo.
On the year he was elected senator in 2007, Trillanes joined Brig. Gen. Danilo Lim in the Manila Peninsula standoff to protest the alleged rampant corruption under Arroyo government.
More than 300 soldiers and supporters of the three failed coup attempts will benefit from the Amnesty Proclamation 75 which President Aquino issued last November.
----------------------------------------------------------
© Copyright, 2011 by PHILIPPINE HEADLINE NEWS ONLINE
All rights reserved
----------------------------------------------------------
PHILIPPINE HEADLINE NEWS ONLINE [PHNO] WEBSITE
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
Follow us on Twitter: http://twitter.com/phnotweet
This is the PHILIPPINE HEADLINE NEWS ONLINE (PHNO) Mailing List.
To stop receiving our news items, please send a blank e-mail addressed to: phno-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com
Please visit our homepage at: http://www.newsflash.org/
(c) Copyright 2009. All rights reserved.
-------------------------------------------------------------
