France Castro and Co-Petitioners appeal child abuse verdict before appellate court
FRANCE-Representative France Castro and other members of the ACT Teachers party-list have informed a Tagum court that they want to appeal the court’s 2018 decision finding them guilty of harming minors to the Court of Appeals (CA).
What prompted France Castro’s Appeal?
Castro and others requested that the case be “given due course and the same elevated to the Court of Appeals by way of an appeal” in a five-page notice of appeal filed on Monday with the Tagum Regional Trial Court (RTC) Branch 2. This came after the RTC convicted Castro, Satur Ocampo, the former representative of the Bayan Muna party-list, and 11 other people guilty of violating Republic Act 7610, also known as the Special Protection of Children Against Abuse, Exploitation, and Discrimination Act, Section 10. It imposed a four- to six-year jail term on them. Additionally, the court mandated that they pay P10,000 in moral damages and P10,000 in civil indemnity to each juvenile, jointly and severally. The order will be subject to a 6% annual interest rate from the time the decision is finalized until the whole amount is paid. Castro claimed in a statement that instructors and pupils at Lumad schools are being harassed by the military. Lumad communities continue to face threats and harassment from the military to this day, according to Castro. The case started because they and 17 other people were accused of trafficking after it was claimed that they had held juveniles in Talaingod, Davao del Norte, in November 2018. Following the paramilitary organization ALAMARA’s forced padlocking of the Salugpongan Community Center, Castro, Ocampo, and seventy-two other members of the group were undertaking a National Solidarity Mission in Talaingod to provide assistance to Lumad schools and teachers in the region and look into allegations of human rights abuses.
Can the appellate court overturn the verdict?
The issue began on November 28, 2018, when tribal elders closed the lumad school Salugpungan in Barangay Palma Gil, Talaingod municipality, on orders from the military and requested the instructors to leave the region. Judge Jimmy Boco, the acting presiding judge of RTC Court Branch 2 in Tagum City, found Ocampo, Castro, and 11 other people guilty of violating Republic Act No. 7610, which offers a stronger deterrent and special protection against child abuse, in a ruling that was made on July 3 but made public to the media over the weekend. Edgar Ugal, Rev. Ryan Magpayo, Eller Ordeniza, and Rev. Jurie Jaime were the four pastors who were charged; the prosecution was unable to establish their guilt beyond a reasonable doubt, hence the court cleared them. Ma. Eugenia Victoria Nolasco, Jesus Madamo, Merino Poquita, Ma. Concepcion Ibarra, Jenevive Paraba, Nerhaya Talledo, Maricel Andagkit, Marcial Rendon, Marianne Aga, Nerf Awning, and Wingwing Daunsay were found guilty by the court and sentenced to four to six years in prison, in addition to Ocampo and Castro. They were also ordered to provide each of the 14 children P10,000 in moral damages and P10,000 in civil indemnity.
What are the grounds for France Castro’s Appeal?
According to gmanetwork, Human rights organization Karapatan claims that Ariel Ansan, another party to the lawsuit, changed his declaration to indicate that the national solidarity mission exposed children to danger. The court found that the accused had done acts that were harmful to the safety and welfare of the young learners by having them in their company and having them walk for three hours in the evening on an unsafe and dark road without the support of law enforcement, a government agency, or any other adult.” As per malaya, Together, Ocampo, Castro, and the other educators and activists known as the Talaingod 18 promised to challenge their conviction. They would start the appeals process at the RTC level and, if required, take it all the way to the Supreme Court. Ocampo and Castro condemned the ruling as unacceptable and unjust in a joint statement, claiming that the wrongful conviction speaks of the persistent attacks on lumad schools and communities and the ongoing persecution of those who are helping and advocating for the rights of lumad children. Castro called the ruling absurd and unacceptable and insisted that the lumad people and those who support them must no longer be the target of false accusations, intimidation, and ongoing threats. Rep. Arlene Brosas of the Gabriela women’s party and Rep. Raoul Manuel of the Kabataan party list, Castro’s fellow Makabayan bloc members, denounced the ruling as unfair.
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