Cyclone Nilam: Bodies of three missing sailors found

The bodies of three of the five missing sailors of ship MT Pratibha Cauvery, which was grounded by cyclone Nilam, have been found.

One of the bodies was washed ashore near the Chennai harbour while the other was found near Adyar Estuary. Another body was found at sea this afternoon. All the bodies are yet to be identified.

Meanwhile, the two other sailors remain

The ship had run aground near the Besant Nagar beach in Chennai on Wednesday. The five sailors went missing after a lifeboat they were using to leave the ship capsized.

So far, three sailors have lost their lives in the tragedy.

Coast Guard helicopters had on Thursday rescued 15 trapped sailors from the ship. The initial rescue operations on the day of the cyclone were carried out by fishermen.

When the cyclone made its landfall, the ship's captain had sent out a distress call, but got no response. The Coast Guard and the Tamil Nadu government's Coastal Security Group were unable to launch rescue operations immediately; they said the gusty winds and bad weather didn't allow it.

A Coast Guard official said: "We do not monitor ships at ports, not even on a cyclone day. We rescue only when there is a call."

Chennai Port officials said the ship's captain had ignored instructions to leave for safe waters following the cyclone alert.

Friday 2 November 2012

http://www.ndtv.com/article/india/cyclone-nilam-bodies-of-three-missing-sailors-found-two-still-to-be-traced-287414

Delay in DNA tests for Baldia factory fire victims

At the only morgue in Pakistan’s largest city lie the blackened remains of 32 people killed in one of the worst industrial accidents in the country’s history, wrapped in white plastic body bags waiting for DNA tests to determine who they are.

That means an excruciating wait — so far more than a month — for families whose relatives are believed to have been killed but have not been accounted for.

One of those in the morgue may be the daughter-in-law of Aisha Bano. Bano’s son and his wife both were working as stitching machine operators in the warehouse-factory producing jeans and other clothes when it was ravaged by a Sept. 11 blaze. The son is known to have died. His wife is still missing.

Bano says her grandchildren have continuous nightmares about their missing mother, dreaming that she’s trying to get home.

“Almost every midnight one of them wakes me up to tell me somebody is outside the house calling their names and pleading to open the door,” said Bano, tears rolling down her cheeks.

The fire horrified Karachi, and residents are still struggling to deal with the extent of the tragedy. According to official figures, 259 workers died in the fire, but there are indications the toll may be even higher. The inferno laid bare the dangerous conditions at some Pakistani factories, as well as the limitations of facilities in this port city of more than 18 million people.

It took rescue workers more than 36 hours to put out the blaze. Investigators haven’t determined what caused the fire but suggested that it might have been a short circuit that ignited material and wood. Between 300 and 400 workers were inside working. An investigation found that the emergency exits were permanently locked, and the main doors were locked after the fire broke out to prevent theft.

Many of the dead suffocated to death in the basement when it filled with smoke. Those on the top floors of the five-story building could be seen on television images desperately breaking through the metal bars blocking the windows and then jumping to the ground below.

When authorities were finally able to make their way into the blackened building, they found dozens of bodies, many charred beyond recognition.

Most of the dead have been identified and handed over to their families, many in the first couple of days because the bodies were intact.

Those remaining are at the Edhi Morgue, identifiable only by DNA.

There’s no place in Karachi to do the DNA tests, so samples have been sent to a laboratory in Islamabad, said officials. Despite reassurances from the government that the dead would be quickly identified, the turnover has been slow. The lab provided results on nine bodies so far, leaving 32 still at the morgue, said Inspector Jahanzeb Khan with the Karachi police.

“We sent a lot of reminders to the laboratory to expedite the DNA match process,” he said.

Bano’s family received the body of her son, Muhammad Javed, from the hospital the day after the fire. But his wife Samina’s has still not been identified. Bano and her other sons initially thought Samina might still be alive and visited all the city’s hospitals. When realization struck that she was likely dead, they began visiting the morgue.

“We checked all the unidentified bodies so many times. We visited the Edhi Morgue 17 days in a row,” she said, sitting next to her three grandchildren and younger son.

The doctors took a DNA sample from one of the relatives and told them it would take up to three days to confirm Samina’s body, Bano said. When they contacted the police, they were told the samples were sent to Islamabad and were told to wait.

The lack of identification has also made it difficult for families to receive compensation promised by the government.

Muhammad Siddiq lost his son Muhammad Shehbaz in the factory. His son came home for lunch that day with a fever but he brushed aside his mother’s urging to stay home and returned to work. Provincial government officials told the family they have to prove they have lost a family member before they can receive compensation. So they need confirmation of his body.

Siddiq said the compensation pales in comparison to the family’s need to bury their son.

“All I need is my son’s body so his soul can rest,” he said. “His mother has almost lost her senses.”

A recent survey by a Karachi union suggests even more people might have been killed.

The Hosiery Garment Textile Workers Union along with the Pakistan Institute of Labor Education and Research surveyed families in the neighborhood where the factory was located as well as another neighborhood nearby where many workers lived. They found 65 families who said they were still missing relatives after the blaze. Some of those could be among the unidentified at the morgue, but the numbers indicate many might not be.

“If they have died, the casualties are much higher than reported,” said Rehana Yasmin from the union.

Two of the owners of Ali Enterprises, which owned the factory, are in a Karachi prison awaiting trial on murder charges for allegedly telling guards to lock the doors after the fire started to prevent theft. A third owner was allowed to stay out of jail because of poor health. Police have also arrested the factory’s general manager and three private security guards on murder charges for carrying out the orders to lock the doors.

The Federal Investigation Agency, one of the country’s highest law enforcement agencies, was tasked with investigating the fire and recently submitted a report blaming the owners and relevant government departments for not following safety and labor laws.

The second floor, where most of the casualties were reported, was not even in the approved map of the factory, the FIA found. Water hydrants did not work, and workers had not been given rescue training by the city’s civil defense department, the FIA found. The factory was not registered with the provincial labor department, in violation of the country’s labor laws.

Friday 2 Novemebr 2012

http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/asia_pacific/delay-in-dna-tests-means-families-wait-for-bodies-of-loved-ones-after-deadly-pakistani-fire/2012/11/02/6979c45a-24b9-11e2-92f8-7f9c4daf276a_story.html

Families await bodies after Pakistan factory fire

KARACHI, Pakistan—At the only morgue in Pakistan's largest city lie the blackened remains of 32 people killed in one of the worst industrial accidents in the country's history, wrapped in white plastic body bags waiting for DNA tests to determine who they are.

That means an excruciating wait—so far more than a month—for families whose relatives are believed to have been killed but have not been accounted for.

One of those in the morgue may be the daughter-in-law of Aisha Bano. Bano's son and his wife both were working as stitching machine operators in the warehouse-factory producing jeans and other clothes when it was ravaged by a Sept. 11 blaze. The son is known to have died. His wife is still missing.

Bano says her grandchildren have continuous nightmares about their missing mother, dreaming that she's trying to get home.

"Almost every midnight one of them wakes me up to tell me somebody is outside the house calling their names and pleading to open the door," said Bano, tears rolling down her cheeks.

The fire horrified Karachi, and residents are still struggling to deal with the extent of the tragedy. According to official figures, 259 workers died in the fire, but there are indications the toll may be even higher. The inferno laid bare the dangerous conditions at some Pakistani factories, as well as the limitations of facilities in this port city of more than 18 million people.

It took rescue workers more than 36 hours to put out the blaze. Investigators haven't determined what caused the fire but suggested that it might have been a short circuit that ignited material and wood. Between 300 and 400 workers were inside working. An investigation found that the emergency exits were permanently locked, and the main doors were locked after the fire broke out to prevent theft.

Many of the dead suffocated to death in the basement when it filled with smoke. Those on the top floors of the five-story building could be seen on television images desperately breaking through the metal bars blocking the windows and then jumping to the ground below.

When authorities were finally able to make their way into the blackened building, they found dozens of bodies, many charred beyond recognition.

Most of the dead have been identified and handed over to their families, many in the first couple of days because the bodies were intact.

Those remaining are at the Edhi Morgue, identifiable only by DNA.

There's no place in Karachi to do the DNA tests, so samples have been sent to a laboratory in Islamabad, said officials. Despite reassurances from the government that the dead would be quickly identified, the turnover has been slow. The lab provided results on nine bodies so far, leaving 32 still at the morgue, said Inspector Jahanzeb Khan with the Karachi police.

"We sent a lot of reminders to the laboratory to expedite the DNA match process," he said.

Bano's family received the body of her son, Muhammad Javed, from the hospital the day after the fire. But his wife Samina's has still not been identified. Bano and her other sons initially thought Samina might still be alive and visited all the city's hospitals. When realization struck that she was likely dead, they began visiting the morgue.

"We checked all the unidentified bodies so many times. We visited the Edhi Morgue 17 days in a row," she said, sitting next to her three grandchildren and younger son.

The doctors took a DNA sample from one of the relatives and told them it would take up to three days to confirm Samina's body, Bano said. When they contacted the police, they were told the samples were sent to Islamabad and were told to wait.

The lack of identification has also made it difficult for families to receive compensation promised by the government.

Muhammad Siddiq lost his son Muhammad Shehbaz in the factory. His son came home for lunch that day with a fever but he brushed aside his mother's urging to stay home and returned to work. Provincial government officials told the family they have to prove they have lost a family member before they can receive compensation. So they need confirmation of his body.

Siddiq said the compensation pales in comparison to the family's need to bury their son.

"All I need is my son's body so his soul can rest," he said. "His mother has almost lost her senses."

A recent survey by a Karachi union suggests even more people might have been killed.

The Hosiery Garment Textile Workers Union along with the Pakistan Institute of Labor Education and Research surveyed families in the neighborhood where the factory was located as well as another neighborhood nearby where many workers lived. They found 65 families who said they were still missing relatives after the blaze. Some of those could be among the unidentified at the morgue, but the numbers indicate many might not be.

"If they have died, the casualties are much higher than reported," said Rehana Yasmin from the union.

Two of the owners of Ali Enterprises, which owned the factory, are in a Karachi prison awaiting trial on murder charges for allegedly telling guards to lock the doors after the fire started to prevent theft. A third owner was allowed to stay out of jail because of poor health. Police have also arrested the factory's general manager and three private security guards on murder charges for carrying out the orders to lock the doors.

The Federal Investigation Agency, one of the country's highest law enforcement agencies, was tasked with investigating the fire and recently submitted a report blaming the owners and relevant government departments for not following safety and labor laws.

The second floor, where most of the casualties were reported, was not even in the approved map of the factory, the FIA found. Water hydrants did not work, and workers had not been given rescue training by the city's civil defense department, the FIA found. The factory was not registered with the provincial labor department, in violation of the country's labor laws.

Friday 2 November 2012

http://www.lcsun-news.com/ci_21911686/families-await-bodies-after-pakistan-factory-fire

Jnaneswari victims' kin to move court

KOLKATA: Miffed over delay in issuing death certificates, members of 16 families, who lost their kin in the Jnaneswari Express accident on May 28, 2010, are planning to move the court. According to them, they can't even claim their jobs and succession documents in the absence of the death certificates.

Of the 150 victims of the tragedy, about 40 bodies were heavily mutilated and later many were identified through DNA matching. Still 23 bodies are still of the train accident are lying in the morgues for identification. As several DNA profiles did not match, the state, in June, 2012, the state government's home (political) department issued a missive to the relatives of 11 victims of the Jnaneswari express advising them to take legal route. The state had said that under the provision of law it's not permissible to issue death certificates unless the bodies are identified.

Juthika Atta, whose husband Prasenjit was in the S-3 compartment, is shattered. "His body could not be traced. DNA test didn't help. I got Rs 10 lakh as compensation. But I need a job to take care of my daughter Poulami (7) and the ailing in-laws. So, I need the death certificate.",the railways won't give me a job."

The compensation package included Rs 5 lakh from the railways, Rs 2 lakh from the PM's Relief Fund and Rs 3 lakh from the CM's Relief Fund.

For Rajesh Kumar Bathra, life came to a halt, as his wife Indu Devi, daughter Sneha (17) and son Saurav (13) were in the train on the fateful day. While Sneha could not be found, an injured Saurav died in a hospital on May 31,2010. He received his wife's body on December 26, 2010. "I visit Midnapore and Kharagpur regularly to find out Sneha."

Surendra Singh, who lost his wife Nilam (37) and sons Rahul (17) and Rohit (15), goes to Midnapore every month to find traces of missing Nilam and Rahul. Rohit was found dead on the spot. "My younger son Raju gave samples thrice for the DNA test. But Nilam and Rahul are still untraced. Raju had applied for a job in the railways, but they turned it down stating that he was only eligible in his father's absence."would have if the father had died then he would have been eligible."

Unnati Mondal lost her husband Swapan Mondal and with one-year old niece Latikais yet to get their death certificates.

Hisabuddin Sheikh is lobbying with the railway officials for a job for his nephew Selim Sheikh (19), as his brother Ayajuddin died in the accident. on his way to the middle-east.

But the death certificate is an impediment.

65-year old Suresh Gajbhiy's son Amit (31) and daughter-in-law Sunita died in the accident. "It is difficult for me to come from Nagpur for the death certificate." Similarly, Pankaj Upadhyay of Madhya Pradesh finds it difficult to come frequently to Kolkata for his brother Pradip's death certificate.

For 73-year-old Sushil Kumar Sil and his 65-year-old wife Mallika, life is of little value as they lost their son Tapas (42), daughter-in-law Chaitali (31), daughter Sujata Das (35), son-in-law Shyamal Das (38) and grandsons Srijit (10), Srinjay (3) and Siddhartha (7). They shifted to Sodepur from their Dunlop residence as it was impossible for them to stay in the same house.

Former chief justice of Calcutta high court Chittatosh Mookerjee said a petition before the court can help the kin get death certificates. He said that under the Evidence Act, a person, who had not been heard of for seven years, is presumed to be dead. "But the court, through inference, can direct for providing a death certificate, if it is proved that they had died due to the accident."

It is unending wait for 16 family members, who lost their dear ones in the Jnaneswari Express on May 28, 2010. They are yet to get death certificates of their relatives and so they are now moving high court for relief. Without it many are unable to claim jobs or get succession certificate.

Friday 2 November 2012

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kolkata/Jnaneswari-victims-kin-to-move-court/articleshow/16998964.cms

Six Indian ship crew missing after cyclone crash

Rescuers in southern India searched Thursday for six tanker crew that went missing after their lifeboat capsized as a cyclone slammed into the coast overnight, forcing thousands to flee and killing eight.

The crew of the Pratibha Cauvery oil tanker was forced to abandon ship when it ran aground on the southern edge of Chennai, and one sailor was confirmed to have drowned.

The ship, which had unloaded its oil in Chennai port, was stranded on a beach close to the shore on Thursday as three helicopters and small vessels took the 15 remaining crew members ashore.

"One sailor is dead and we are searching for six other crew members," said Jayraman, a disaster management official in Chennai.

Shipping authorities had reported that the Pratibha Cauvery was not badly damaged and that a plan to refloat it was being drawn up, he said.

The overall death toll from the cyclone reached eight, with thousands of people also forced to flee from coastal towns to seek shelter in schools and government buildings.

One other person drowned, two were killed when a wall collapsed, one person was electrocuted and three died when a tree fell on their hut.

"We have managed to restore power in all districts after the storm," Jayraman said. "Food and drinking water have been provided to all the 5,000 people who have been evacuated from their homes."

Government authorities on Thursday said the storm had weakened substantially though heavy rains continued to lash some parts of Tamil Nadu and Karnataka states.

Friday 2 November 2012

http://www.globaltimes.cn/content/741820.shtml

Pinoy among 22 dead in tanker blast in Riyadh

At least one Filipino was killed while ten others were hospitalized in a fuel truck explosion that killed at least 22 people in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia Thursday, the Department of Foreign Affairs said.

In an update posted on his Twitter account, DFA spokesman Raul Hernandez indicated three more Filipinos were injured but have been discharged.

"One Filipino was killed in the Riyadh fuel truck explosion, nine (are) in hospitals, three (have been) discharged," he said.

In Riyadh, Vice Consul Redentor Genotiva said there is a tenth injured Filipino also being given medical attention.

The gas tanker truck exploded on a main road in the Saudi capital on Thursday, killing at least 22 people, including one unnamed Filipino. The explosion also injured about 111 others—eleven of them Filipinos—and left a trail of destruction, officials said.

The lorry veered into a bridge pylon at a junction on Khurays Road in Riyadh at about 7:30 a.m., causing a gas leak that spread out and then burst into flames, destroying nearby cars and a business, the officials told AFP.

An injured man after an explosion in eastern Riyadh on November 1. At least 10 people were killed when a fuel truck crashed into a flyover in the Saudi capital Riyadh, triggering the blast that caused the collapse of an industrial building. Al Arabiya and Al Jazeera television stations reported that aside from the fatalities, at least 50 people were injured.

Philippine Ambassador to Saudi Arabia Ezzedin Tago, in an interview on GMA News' "State of the Nation," cited initial reports indicating the deceased was brought to a morgue but was not immediately identifiable. He added they are coordinating with the deceased's kin.

He also expressed condolences with the family of the deceased, and assured the families of the injured the embassy is coordinating with Saudi authorities.

In a radio interview Friday, Vice Consul Genotiva said they will coordinate with the victim's employer for the repatriation.

"Makikipag-ugnayan tayo sa employer para mapadali ang pag-uwi ng labi sa Pilipinas," he said in an interview on dzBB radio.

He said the fatality was identified by a brother-in-law.

While he withheld the name of the fatality for the moment, he described the fatality and the brother-in-law as workers for a tractor company.

Genotiva also said their latest figures indicated 10 Filipinos, nine of them employees of the tractor company, were injured in the incident.

The injured were being treated in four hospitals in the Kingdom, he added.

Genotiva also said the Embassy will coordinate with the victims' employer to make sure the injured receive medical attention.

"Sila naman ay legal worker ng kumpanya. Under Saudi law sila ay required bigyan ng insurance ng employers," he said.

He said the Embassy will talk with the injured workers and ask them if they want to continue working in the Kingdom or be repatriated.

"Pag-uusapan natin batay sa decision ng worker kung gusto manatili o umuwi," he said.

An AFP photographer at the scene of the explosion reported widespread damage to the area, with dozens of cars mangled by the blast and burned out.

A bus that had been gutted by the fire stood idle on the flyover, with witnesses saying that the vehicle had been transporting workers whose fate remained unknown.

Another truck fell off the bridge due to the impact of the explosion, the witnesses said.

Amateur video footage posted on the Internet showed thick black smoke billowing from different spots around the flyover whose pylons were also damaged.

Civil defense personnel carried two "completely charred" bodies from the site.

"The death toll of the gas truck fire in Khurays has increased to 22 people, in addition to 111 wounded," a civil defense official said.

Earlier, a civil defense official who requested not to be named told AFP that at least 14 people were killed and around 60 others hurt "in the explosion of the truck when it hit a bridge pylon."

Civil defense spokesman in Riyadh, Mohammed al-Hammadi, said the explosion took place after gas leaked from the tank of the lorry, according to SPA state news agency.

"The explosion and fire happened after leaked gas filled the area. Huge damage happened, in addition to many traffic collisions," he said, adding there were fatalities without specifying how many.

Hammadi said a nearby show yard of construction machinery was severely damaged by the explosion.

Friday 2 November 2012

http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/story/280584/pinoyabroad/news/pinoy-among-22-dead-in-tanker-blast-in-riyadh

OR crime lab helps solve nameless mysteries

In murder investigations, detectives are usually searching for a killer. But in dozens of cases, the mystery also includes unidentified remains.

Clackamas County Sheriff's forensic artist, Joyce Nagy, helps identify those nameless victims.

"I need to do the best job I can to give (each victim) a voice," said Nagy. "It's a process, takes a lot of prayers and good intuition to make the drawings turn out the way they should look," she said.

To develop the drawings, Nagy uses information gleaned by Oregon State Police forensic scientist, Nici Vance.

"You'd be amazed by the things we can tell by the skeleton," said Vance. "When you have a truly unidentified individual, you're starting at a deficit," she said.

That's where Portland Police detectives found themselves last June, when park rangers discovered the remains of a young woman in Washington Park. Her face was decomposed beyond recognition, her fingerprints nowhere on file.

DNA ultimately led detectives to the victim's suspected killer, Mark Beebout. He's also a suspect in an unrelated Southeast Portland murder from July.

But they still didn't know who the victim was, so investigators turned to Vance and Nagy for help.

Vance used special tools to measure the victim's skull, cranium and jaw. She then used a formula to calculate the measurements which helped determine the victim was likely a teenage girl, possibly mixed race, likely Hispanic-- all critical clues.

Nagy used that information in her drawing. After photographing the victim's skull, she used a light table to trace over the photo and develop a sketch. As they do with all unnamed victims, Nagy and Vance submitted the sketch and case information into a national online database that tries to link unidentified human remains with missing persons cases.

The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System can be accessed at www.NamUs.Gov. Anyone can search it, including parents of missing people and law enforcement agencies.

Ultimately, dental records pointed investigators in the Washington Park case to 15-year-old Mayra Sophia Cruz Rodriguez, a reported runaway from San Diego County, California.

A photograph of Cruz Rodriguez revealed an uncanny resemblance to Nagy's forensic sketch.

"We have a truly exceptional forensic artist on our hands," said Vance. Nagy, said she's just thankful for closure in that part of the case.

"To allow the family to close that chapter on that life... It just brings a tear to your heart," Nagy said.

Vance said investigators are now trying to identify the remains of 81 other homicide victims in Oregon, hoping to bring some sort of closure to their families.

To accomplish that, she hopes more people will post missing persons information on NamUs.gov, which could help investigators identify more victims.

Friday 2 November 2012

http://www.kgw.com/news/local/Naming-the-nameless-victims-176705891.html

Families remember missing loved ones

Erlinda Malicdem still remembers the last words her husband, Jimmy, uttered in Filipino before the urban poor leader disappeared on Oct. 8, 1987: “When the time comes, you’ll understand what I’m doing.”

“He was always there when they needed him,” she told the Philippine Daily Inquirer in a phone interview. She was 29 when she last saw her husband, then 34, in Sucat, Parañaque City.

Now 54, Erlinda has been visiting Bantayog ng mga Desaparecido at Redemptorist Church in Baclaran, Parañaque, since the memorial was erected in 1994. Tomorrow (Thursday), she will be visiting with her three children and five grandchildren, and over 60 other families.

“The families come here every year because they have no tomb to visit on All Souls’ Day,” said Wilma Tizon, deputy secretary general of the Families of Victims of Involuntary Disappearance Inc. (FIND), an organization of families, friends and colleagues of the disappeared, as well as surfaced “desaparecidos” (disappeared).

FIND has documented 1,838 cases of disappearances since 1971. Nearly half of the cases (878) happened during the martial law regime of President Ferdinand Marcos. “Every All Souls’ Day, we make it a point to visit the memorial to remember our loved ones,” Erlinda said.

She remembers Jimmy as a man for others. “Before he disappeared, every time somebody called on him for help, that person becomes his priority.” “He’s been gone for a long time, but the pain is still there,” she said.

For families and friends of the disappeared, the Bantayog stands as common ground for remembrance. The memorial lists the names of Jimmy Malicdem and hundreds of other missing people etched in granite panels.

Unveiled in September 2004 in time for the 23rd anniversary of martial law, the memorial is the refurbished “Flame of Courage Monument,” which was originally unveiled by FIND on July 13, 1994, the ninth anniversary of the disappearance of Redemptorist priest Rudy Romano.

Romano, a well-known human rights activist, was abducted in Cebu in 1985, allegedly by military agents. To this day, he has not been found.

Designed and created by sculptor Lito Mondejar, the Flame of Courage features a mother carrying a torch, which symbolizes the courage of those left behind and continuing the struggle for justice.

A child holding the picture of his father represents hope that one day, the families will be reunited with their missing loved ones, according to FIND.

Tomorrow’s (Thursday) program will carry the theme “Paggunita at Pagdiriwang sa Buhay at Pakikibaka ng mga Desaparecidos” (Remembering and celebrating the lives and struggles of the Desaparecidos).

A thanksgiving ceremony will also be held for the passage of the Anti-Enforced Disappearance Bill earlier this month. “We will also again call for President Benigno Aquino III to sign the bill immediately,” Tizon said.

“Now that Congress has approved the bill and it is now in President Aquino’s hands, we hope he will sign it soon,” Erlinda said.

“We don’t want more disappearances. We don’t want more families experiencing the pain that these enforced disappearances cause,” she added.

The first in Asia to criminalize enforced disappearances, the bill was approved by the Senate and the House of Representatives on Oct. 16, It is now pending approval by the President.

The bill defines enforced or involuntary disappearance as “the arrest, detention, abduction or any other form of deprivation of liberty committed by agents of the state or by persons or groups of persons acting with authorization or support from the state, followed by a refusal to acknowledge the deprivation of liberty or by concealment of the fate or whereabouts of the disappeared.”

The maximum penalty for offenders is life imprisonment, or equivalent to 20 years and one day to 40 years in prison. Victims of enforced disappearance and their kin will also be entitled to compensation, restitution and rehabilitation.

The crime has no prescription period, unless the victim has surfaced. This means that the perpetrators can still be prosecuted regardless of how long the time of disappearance has passed.

“Every year, the families pray for justice to be served, and for their loved ones to be eventually found,” Tizon said.

Simultaneous rites will be held in FIND chapters in provinces in Central Luzon and Bicol, Cebu, Leyte, Negros, Panay, Northern Mindanao, Southern Mindanao and Western Mindanao.

Source: Families of Victims of Involuntary Disappearance (FIND), “Beyond Disappearance: Chronicles of Courage”

Friday 2 November 2012

http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/299438/families-remember-missing-loved-ones