PHM-Exch> Media Release: Ten months is enough, withdraw all cases against the Morong 43 now

[Claudio Schuftan]

From: CHD ManCom <chdmancom at gmail.com>

December 6, 2010


*Reference: Carlos Montemayor, RN - 0922.4996237 / (+632) 929.8109*


Ten months is enough, withdraw all cases against the Morong 43 now


Four days prior to the observance of the International Human Rights Day,
relatives and supporters of the Morong 43 renewed their call for the
immediate withdrawal of all cases filed against the incarcerated health
workers in Camp Bagong Diwa.  By joining the 43 health workers' hunger
strike, they took their campaign for freedom and justice to a higher level.
They declared their all-out support for the Morong 43's hunger strike which
began Friday last week.


Carlos Montemayor, a registered nurse and spokesperson of the Free the
Morong 43 Health Workers! Alliance revealed that relatives and supporters
will also hold a hunger strike beginning today at the Philippine Independent
Church along Taft Avenue in solidarity with the health workers.


The hunger strike will continue until their demand for the Morong 43's
unconditional release is realized, the group said.


Meanwhile, the group expressed optimism on Department of Justice Secretary
Leila De Lima's pronouncement that she has submitted another memorandum to
Malacañang on December 3 addressing in part the plight of the Morong 43.   “We
hope that Sec. De Lima will do everything in her authority to make the
President realize that rectification of errors in this case means the
withdrawal of all charges filed to facilitate the immediate and
unconditional release of the health workers,” Montemayor added.


Montemayor furthered that the DOJ executive's hope of finding closure to the
case is shared by their group.  However, closure can only be achieved when
the Morong 43 are unconditionally released and the people behind the case
are punished – regardless of their position and influence in the government,
he added.


The group said that they are aware that the perpetrators of this gross human
rights violation are doing everything it takes to block the executive and
judiciary branch from releasing the 43.  “The health workers were stripped
of their basic political and democratic rights ten months ago today.  They
are on a hunger strike because they are fighting for a just and principled
demand,” Montemayor said.


The group pinned hopes that Sec. De Lima will not succumb to pressures from
the military and other government officials behind the Morong 43's
detention.


Montemayor vowed that different groups and supporters of the Morong 43 here
and abroad will be holding protest activities in similar forms if the
Philippine government will continue to detain the health workers.##
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://phm.phmovement.org/pipermail/phm-exchange-phmovement.org/attachments/20101206/d0f0c8b3/attachment.html>