Mom of missing son seeks solons help

March 28, 2008  --  Got something to say?
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burgos.jpgBy Rodney J. Jaleco
WASHINGTON D.C. Edith Burgos, widow of press freedom fighter Joe Burgos and mother to missing activist Jonas Burgos, is on a mission thats taken her to the steps of Capitol Hill.

In some cases we were able to talk to the congressmen themselves, in other cases their senior staff. We were received very warmly. We told them what was happening in the Philippines the human rights violations, the case of my son Jonas, Mrs. Burgos says in a forthcoming report on The Filipino Channels Balitang America.

Jonas, 37, was abducted by armed men nearly 10 months ago, in broad daylight at a busy Quezon City mall. Witnesses reported the tags of the kidnappers get-away car, which turned out to belong to a vehicle impounded at an Army battalion based in Bulacan, where Jonas worked as a lands right activist.

The military denies the charges and points instead to the communist New Peoples Army.
Mrs. Burgos was accompanied by her daughter, Virginia Ann who is now a constant companion and de-facto aide. She was forced to quit a well-paying job in Makati because she was being followed, after blame pointed increasingly to the military.

They listened intently. The requests we made were responded positively but Im sorry I cant tell you about them right now, Mrs. Burgos disclosed. Those ears included the staff members of two presidential hopefuls, Senators Barack Obama and John McCain.
She is telling her story to anyone who cared to listen. Mrs. Burgos is traveling all over the US under the auspices of GMA Watch, a New York-based Philippine opposition group. Shes been to Minnesota, New York and now D.C. She is also scheduled to address Fil-Am groups in Los Angeles, San Francisco and Seattle.

Shes hoping that for those whove listened to us, who know whats happening in the Philippines will get involved not only in the Philippines but also with whats happening here that affect the Philippines.

Ang dasal namin na ang mga Filipino dito na maganda naman ang buhay dito sana hindi nila makalimutan na malaki ang problema sa Pilipinas at tumulong hindi lang sa pagpapadala ng pera kundi maging involved sa mga organisasyon dito sa America, she averred.

ECUMENICAL ADVOCACY DAYS
Mrs. Burgos also spoke before the Ecumenical Advocacy Days conference held at the Hilton Hotel in Alexandria, Virginia. The Ecumenical Advocacy has served as a venue for church-based organizations to report on conditions in the Philippines.

These same church groups were instrumental in raising the human rights problem in the Philippines to US lawmakers. Congress, in passing the 2008 foreign aid bill, tacked restrictive language on military aid to the country.

The release of some $2 million in additional military aid is conditioned on a State Department certification that the Arroyo administration is abiding by the recommendations of UN Special Rapporteur Philip Alston.

The Presbyterian Church recently sent a fact-finding mission to the Philippines to monitor progress in improving human rights in the country. They reported what they saw in the conference.

To constantly hear those stories and for the people showing no sense of hopelessness is incredible, whereas I felt so discouraged, so helpless, reported Irene Pak, a member of that team.

They say we have chosen sides. We choose to work for the poor and the oppressed. We have to do it, she stressed.
I feel in my heart that he is alive, Mrs. Burgos says with the confidence of a beleaguered mother. She said that a lot of people are surprised by her calm. She walked deliberately on the halls of the Canon congressional offices, pausing periodically to make sure everyone was accounted for. But there were moments when she would look downcast, seemingly deep in thought.
We have no proof that he is alive, we also have no proof he is dead. So we choose to believe he is alive, she tells TFCs Balitang America.

It makes the search easier for us. Mahirap yung naghahanap pero ang frame of mind mo naghahanap ka ng hindi buhay. Its difficult to even talk about it, she said.

We need to find him. If theyve murdered him already, we still need to find him. If we find him, we will help the desperacidos.
Ang nakikita namin siya ang nagiging mukha ng mga nawawala sa Pilipinas. For this I thank the Lord because my son is able to do something even if he is gone. In fact, by being his disappeared he is able to do this thing. The Burgos family is willing to offer this up to the Lord.

Kung yun ang hinihingi, ibibigay namin. Kung ang hinihingi maghanap kami ng maghanap, we will also do that, she says emphatically.

Tinik po kami sa gobyerno if you can call us that. But the disappearances have to stop. The killings have to stop, Mrs. Burgos stressed.

In a cramp room at the Hilton, she supervised the production of a Powerpoint presentation she would give to church members and Fil-Ams at the Ecumenical Advocacy Days forum downstairs.

We have already forgiven them, she said. That was the first step we had to process kasi di naman kami santo, marami rin kami kasalanan na dapat hingin ng kapatawaran. You have to forgive to be forgiven, so napatawad na namin sila lahat, Mrs. Burgos insists.

Pero dapat magbayad din sila. We need to bring those who ordered his abduction to justice. We are not going away, she declared.

Hindi kami galit. Hindi po kami nakikipag-away. Hindi po ako nakikipaglaban. Naghahanap lang po ako ng anak.

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