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South African-like commission for new Mamasapano inquiry sought
(Photo courtesy of Pimentel’s Facebook page)” width=”960″ height=”624″ />
Senate Pres. Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel III suggested the commission be modeled after South Africa’s commission which investigated human rights violations during the apartheid regime from 1960 to 1964. (Photo courtesy of Pimentel’s Facebook page)MANILA—Following Pres. Rodrigo Duterte’s plan to create a commission to reopen the probe on the Mamasapano massacre, a Senator has proposed to borrow ideas from the South Africa’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission which was created in 1995.
Senate Pres. Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel III suggested the commission be modeled after South Africa’s commission which investigated human rights violations during the apartheid regime from 1960 to 1964.
The 17-member commission was comprised of nine men and eight women, and was chaired by Anglican Archbishop Desmond Tutu.
According to Pimentel, a commission like this “could finally ferret out the truth and pinpoint those who are ultimately responsible for it.”
He, however, said he was also in favor of Pres. Duterte’s idea to create an Agrava Commission-like body. This commission investigated the assassination of former Sen. Benigno Aquino Jr.
The five-man panel was headed by former Court of Appeals Justice Corazon Agrava, who issued a minority report that concluded the killing was a military conspiracy.
“The Philippine Truth Commission will have to be free of political partisanship. It will set the parameters of an independent inquiry that shall brook no outside interference and shall serve one and only one master, which is the truth,” Pimentel said.
Pimentel stressed that “it is a moral necessity” to reopen the probe of the series of events and decisions made in the chain of command that led to the death of the 44 members of the Philippine National Police-Special Action Force (PNP-SAF) two years ago.
He said that because the families of the victims feel that justice was not served by the last administration, he was confident the new administration will give them justice.
“…It will be rendered by an independent, impartial Truth Commission, whose creation I fully support,” he added.
