MANILA, Philippines — A court in Davao del Norte has found Rep. France Castro (ACT Teachers party-list) and former Rep. Satur Ocampo (Bayan Muna party-list) guilty of endangering minors in 2018, sentencing them to up to six years in prison.
In a 26-page decision promulgated on Monday, the Tagum City Regional Trial Court’s Brand 2 convicted Castro, Ocampo and 11 others for violation of Section 10a of Republic Act 7610 or the Special Protection of Children Against Abuse, Exploitation and Discrimination Act.
Castro and Ocampo were sentenced to four to six years and ordered to pay P10,000 as civil indemnity and P10,000 as moral damages to each of the 14 minors involved. The amount would also grow with an interest rate of 6% per annum until full payment.
Castro and Ocampo’s co-accused are Ma. Eugenia Victoria Nolasco, Jesus Madamo, Meriro Poquita, Maricel Andagkit, Marcial Rendon, Marianie Aga, Jenevive Paraba, Nerhaya Talledo, Ma. Concepcion Ibarra, Nerfa Awing, Wingwing Daunsay
The other respondents, namely Edgar Ugal, Ryan Magpayo, Eller Ordeniza and Jurie Jaime, were acquitted.
The decision can still be appealed through a motion for reconsideration in the same court.
What went before
The case stemmed from the accused’s participation in a November 2018 mission which, they argued, aimed to rescue to Lumad schools and teachers from a food blockade and forcible closure of the school by a paramilitary group in Talaingod, Davao del Norte.
In its ruling, however, the court said Castro, Ocampo and their co-accused endangered the children by taking them on a “dark and unsecured road” where they walked for hours, risking potential harm from either government troops or communist New People’s Army guerrillas operating in the area.
“The acts of the accused clearly show that they failed to take necessary precaution to safeguard the safety and well-being of the children when they transported the Lumad learners from Sitio Dulyan to Tagum City,” it added.
It also found no valid justification for the group to take the minor students out of the Sitio Dulyan campus. “Upon review of the records, it is worthy to stress that the tribal leaders of the communities only demanded the teachers to leave the school as their services are no longer needed,” the decision read.
In 2018, Save Our Schools, a network of child-focused organizations, rejected the the military’s claims against Lumad schools as recruitment grounds for communist rebels. It argued that teachers and students were fleeing harassment at Sitio Dulyan in Talaingod from a paramilitary group “at the instigation of the 56th [Infantry Battalion]” of the Armed Forces of the Philippines.
Response to the decision
Castro and Ocampo, members of progressive, left-leaning party-list bloc called Makabayan at the House of Representatives, called the decision “unacceptable and unjust.”
“This wrongful conviction speaks of the continuing persecution of those who are helping and advocating for the rights of Lumad children and the persistent attacks on Lumad schools and communities,” their joint statement read.
“The persons who are actually responsible for the forcible closure of the schools as well as the threats and harassment have never been investigated…This is a clear miscarriage of justice, and we will strongly question this decision in all venues possible,” they added.
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