Philippines: Hold Marcos accountable for inhumane treatment of political prisoner Tomas Dominado
Fight Back News Service is circulating the following statement from the Communist Party of the Philippines.
The Communist Party of the Philippines and the Filipino people express the strongest outrage at the inhuman treatment and acts of humiliation against political prisoner Tomas Dominado. Dominado, who is 74 years old, has long been known as a revolutionary activist and fighter in the Panay island. He has served as consultant of the National Democratic Front of the Philippines in peace negotiations.
He survived a stroke last year. He suffers from hypertension and heart enlargement, neurological deficits and other serious medical issues. He needs a wheelchair to move, and requires the constant assistance of a caregiver. Putting him in jail is outright inhuman. It is a virtual death sentence.
On orders of Marcos and his top police and military officers, Dominado was arrested, along with his caregiver “Jofel,” last December 5 from his place of residence in Iloilo City and brought to the police station where conditions worsened his health condition. For two days, he has been complaining of difficulty in breathing.
Dominado’s legal representatives and medical doctors insisted that he be brought to a medical facility. Following a call and medical certification from the Iloilo Doctor’s Hospital, the police provided an ambulance to transport Dominado. But instead of bringing him to the hospital, he was brought to the Regional Trial Court of Mambusao, 100 kilometers away.
Despite being clearly unfit for incarceration, Dominado was ordered by the court to be remanded to a local jail, which has no health facility. A local doctor issued a medical certificate without even taking vital signs. His daughter was not allowed to accompany him. His bags containing his medical effects were not allowed inside the Pototan prison facility.
The treatment and acts of humiliation by the police and courts against Dominado grossly violates his basic democratic rights. We join the family and friends of Dominado for him to be brought to a hospital and be immediately released.
The charges of murder against Dominado are clearly manufactured to depict him as a criminal. They desperately want to obscure the fact that he is a revolutionary who has dedicated his entire life to the people’s national democratic aspiration, and punish him severely for serving the oppressed and exploited masses.
The inhumane treatment and humiliation of Dominado over the past days is testament to the gross state of human rights in the Philippines under the US-Marcos fascist regime. This is what Marcos has to offer today as the Filipino people mark International Human Rights Day.
In its desperation to silence the people and suppress their democratic struggles, Marcos is unleashing state terrorism all over the country, perpetrating extrajudicial killings, abductions and unlawful arrests against civilians who are being persecuted for being supporters of the revolutionary movement.
We join Tomas Dominado’s family, friends and lawyers in demanding that he and his aide, be immediately released from prison and brought to a medical facility where he could be given the necessary care that he fully deserves.