Besao Army officer denies role in Burgos abduction

BAGUIO CITY -- The Cordilleran army officer who was tagged in the disappearance of activist Jonas Burgos in Quezon City denied any participation in the crime, saying he was in his in Besao, his hometown in Mountain Province the day the abduction took place in Quezon City.

Major Harry Baliaga Jr. said he was a victim of mistaken identity adding he was made responsible for a crime he never committed.

The Court of Appeals, which enforced the Writ of Amparo in the disappearance of Burgos, held Baliaga and the Armed Forces of the Philippines accountable for the crime.

Baliaga said the court disregarded his mother’s testimony and evidence proving he was in Besao when Burgos was forcibly taken at the Ever Gotesco Mall in Quezon City on April 28, 2007.

Instead, the CA gave more weight to the report of the Commission on Human Rights, where witness Jeffrey Cabintoy identified him as the leader of the group that abducted Burgos.

But Rachel, Baliaga’s wife, said the CHR was not objective in its investigation.

“The CHR never bothered to get my husband’s side. They even said it was a waste of time since he can defend himself in court anyway. They came up with a one-sided investigation,” Rachel said.

Baliaga’s camp has been questioning the credibility of the CHR witness.

In naming him, the CHR produced the photograph grabbed from the Facebook account of Philippine Military Academy Sanghaya Class 2000 where Baliaga belonged.

The CHR said the person encircled by the witness in the photograph was Baliaga.

“But that person was not me. It was my classmate. He testified in court that it was him, to no avail,” Baliaga said.

Baliaga added the court did not give weight to the fact that he was no longer assigned with the 56th Infantry Battalion, the military group said to have carried out Burgos’ abduction, when it allegedly carried out the enforced disappearance.

“The commander of the 56th IB executed an affidavit that I was not under his supervision when the crime took place but just the same, the court did not give merit to this,” Baliaga said.

In rendering its ruling, the CA regarded Baliaga’s defenses as mere alibis, saying these could not prevail over the fact that he was positively identified by the witness.

Rachel said the family has suffered so much anxiety and wished this will come to an end to soonest.

“I hope Jonas Burgos surfaces so we can be cleared and all can move on,” she said.

“We recognize the agony of Burgos’ family, but just the same, my family is also suffering because of this case,” she said.

Baliaga is also wishing his name will be cleared for the sake of his three kids.

“My eldest will soon go to school and I want to be cleared of this mess since he is my namesake,” he said.