The United Nations has sent an investigator to look into the alleged killings of leftist militants in the Philippines. Philip Alston, the man sent by the United Nations, is an Australian. He is a law professor at New York University specializing in human rights law and the law of international organizations. He is the director of the NYU Center for Human Rights and Global Justice and special adviser to the High Commissioner for Human Rights.

In his probe in the Philippines, what were the findings of UN Special Rapporteur Alston? He blamed the military for the political killings happening in our country.

Alston, who had conducted a 10-day visit to inquire into the phenomenon of extrajudicial executions, said the President should make public the findings of the Melo Commission, which linked retired Gen. Jovito Palparan and other military commanders to the killings.

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Initially, President Arroyo refused to furnish the Brussels-based European Commission with a copy of the Melo Report. But with the release of the Melo Commission Report to the United Nations, there is no more reason to deny a copy of the report to the European Commission.

On the other hand, Sen. Juan Ponce Enrile, chairman of the Senate Committee on Justice and Human Rights, asked the United Nations human rights investigator, who is looking into the wave of extrajudicial killings in the country, to keep out of Manila's handling of political murders that have taken place since President Arroyo took office in 2001.

Sen. Enrile told Alston and other UN representatives that the issue is a matter which rests in the hands of the Philippine National Police (PNP).

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Caving in to pressures locally and internationally, President Arroyo has decided to make public the findings of the Melo Commission which she created to look into extrajudicial killings in the Philippines.

The move of the President is in the right direction. People could not comprehend why foreigners are furnished copies of the Melo Commission Report but the Filipino people through the media were denied access to the report.

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The matter of protecting leftist leaders is important as the May 14, 2007 election comes nearer. The party-list election, in which party-list groups identified as leftist organizations are running, is hotly contested. They are branded as leftist groups because they espouse the nationalist democratic and socialist programs. Not only that, some rightist groups are also running in the party-list elections. They are tagged as rightist groups because they espouse capitalist programs.

(Socialism is the opposite of capitalism. Socialism advocates a state-controlled economy while capitalism espouses free enterprise or laissez faire. On the other hand, totalitarianism or dictatorship is the opposite of democracy).

(In essence, not all socialists are democratic while not all capitalists are democratic. On the hand, not all democrats are capitalists while not all dictators are capitalists).

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The 1987 Philippine Constitution has provided for a multi-party system. This system seeks to invite groups which espouse armed struggle to gain political power to join the electoral struggle and give up their armed struggle.

Those who belong to the extreme, like the extreme left and the extreme right, both espouse armed struggle to seize political power.

It is in this context that the military should be neutral in their moves vis-à-vis towards the leftist and rightist candidates.

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Who knows that some extreme left and extreme right candidates would give up armed struggle? Rightist rebels like Col. Gringo Honasan gave up armed struggle in favor of electoral struggle. Who knows that leftist rebels like Ka Roger would join the electoral struggle and give up armed struggle?

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It is good that the Catholic Church had released some guidelines in the conduct of the coming election.

However, the Church should be more emphatic in the coming elections. The three G's of politics is still there - i.e., gold, guns and goons.

The Catholic Church should declare that those who sell their votes commit mortal sin.

The Iglesia ni Cristo has succeeded in enforcing their law in not allowing their members to sell their votes. INC members are not allowed to sell their votes because they vote as a bloc.

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For comments and reactions, send mail to Atty. Jorge D. Cabalit, Cabalit Law Office, 74 Belderol Street, Tagbilaran City or send e-mail to: viewpoints@boholchronicle.com