Martial law victims start claiming $1K compensation

Dozens of victims of human rights violations under the iron rule of the late strongman Ferdinand Marcos arrived on Tuesday at the Commission on Human Rights headquarters in Quezon City for the first day of the distribution of their monetary compensation. Those who came were among the 7,526 claimants who have benefited from the ruling of Judge Manuel Real of the US District Court of Hawaii last January ordering the distribution of $7.5 million from a settlement case with a Texas and Colorado properties said to have been bought by the Marcoses allegedly using their ill-gotten money. According to the court ruling, each of the 7,526 claimants will receive $1,000 (roughly P43,000). Originally, there were 9,539 claimants, but around 2,000 were stricken out of the list for failing to fulfill all the requirements. In a letter dated Feb. 7, 2011, American lawyer Robert Swift informed the claimants they could get their checks starting March 1. Claimants should bring a copy of the letter, along with two valid identification cards, to get their compensation.

Last Monday, 12 human rights violations victims during the martial law era received their checks for $1,000 each during the ceremonial distribution at the Club Filipino in San Juan City. Lawyer Rod Domingo Jr., one of the legal counsels for the claimants, said that as of Tuesday noon, 88 victims had already claimed their checks. "Hindi naman ito ang katapusan. Sinasabi namin sa kanila na may tatanggapin pa silang iba pang benefits," Domingo told GMA News Online when asked if he thought the $1,000 compensation even came close to adequately compensate the victims for their suffering during the Marcos regime. The CHR offered to become the venue where Domingo and Swift could distribute the checks for claimants in Metro Manila. Victims residing in Metro Manila have until Friday to claim their checks. Starting March 7, Swift, Domingo, and the CHR will head to 15 provinces to accommodate more claimants there. The lawyers plan to distribute the claims until mid-April. By March 3, claimants from Baguio City can also start getting their checks at the CHR regional office. Rodolfo Benosa, a 62-year-old claimant and martial law torture victim, expressed delight after finally getting his check. "Natutuwa kami at nakatanggap ako. Masuwerte ako kasi iyong iba kong kasama, namatay na lang nang hindi naabutan ito (I am happy that I was able to get this. I am lucky I lived to see this. Other claimants had died without being compensated at all)," he told GMA News Online. Human rights victims and their families have to undergo verification at makeshift tents set up at the court just outside the CHR building along Commonwealth Avenue. [See related: Hearty lunch, house repair for 2 martial law victims] Judge Real’s January ruling actually covered $10 million, but $2.5 million had to be deducted from the total amount for the legal fees and payments for the people who tracked down the properties in Texas and Colorado. Domingo said his camp is already anticipating a favorable decision for their separate $68-million claims in Singapore and New York, where Marcos’ alleged ill-gotten wealth has likewise been invested. The compensations that the human rights victims are petitioning for distribution are part of the $2 billion judgment against the Marcos estate in 1995. Marcos at that time was found liable for the torture, extrajudicial killings, and involuntary disappearances of his critics during his regime. — LBG/KBK, GMA News