Philippines Ecumenical Bishops Group Protests “Vestiges of Martial Law” in Use of Troops

New York, NY, May 18, 2007—Less than a week before the Philippines national election on May 14, the bishops of five denominations saw vestiges of martial law in the deployment of troops in urban areas prior to the vote.

"It is another nail hammered on the flailing limbs of freedom in this country," said a statement from the Ecumenical Bishops’ Forum (EBF), whose co-chairs are United Methodist Bishop Solito K. Toquero of Manila and Roman Catholic Bishop Deogracias S. Iñiguez, Jr.

The election was held to select members of the Philippines national legislature and local officials. The results will not be known until near the end of May because many votes are counted by hand.

At stake in the national vote are control of the Senate and House of Representatives and the future of the administration of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo. The executive branch has been criticized by many Filipino religious leaders because of a series of what are called "extra-judicial killings," allegedly committed by the army and security forces. The estimates of such deaths range from some 110 to more than 800, including clergy and church lay workers identified with civil rights and the economic interests of the poor.

In the statement issued on May 9, the EBF said that the troop deployment was for the purpose of intimidation and harassment. The bishops said: "It smacks of covetousness where those who wield power are evidently after their own political survival and thus twist the definition of democracy to suit their ends."

The forum is a fellowship of bishops from the Roman Catholic Church, the United Church of Christ in the Philippines, The United Methodist Church, the Episcopal Church in the Philippines, and the Philippine Independent Church.

President Arroyo, said the bishops, would have already imposed martial law, "were it not for the vigilance of the citizenry."

The statement also said: "No country claiming to be democratic allows its solders to roam around communities in full battle gear. No country claiming to be free allows its soldiers to engage in partisan politics."

Observers of the election reported incidents of fraud, which the government said it would investigate.

According to widely publicized police reports, 116 people died and 121 were wounded in election-related violence since the start of the 2007 political campaign in mid-January.

The Voice of America broadcasting service reported that some 80 percent of those eligible to vote did so on May 14.