NUPL defends lawyer, 15 others vs. terrorism financing charge

The National Union of Peoples’ Lawyers (NUPL) on Wednesday lamented the filing of charges against its auditor, lawyer Czarina "Dingkay" Golda Musni, and 15 other individuals including nuns from the Rural Missionaries of the Philippines-Northern Mindanao Region (RMP-NMR) for allegedly funneling funds to the Communist Party of the Philippines-New People’s Army (CPP-NPA).

This developed days after the Department of Justice (DOJ) found probable cause to indict Musni and the other accused following an investigation of the Anti-Money Laundering Council into the RMP-NMR’s bank accounts.  The probe took into consideration the two sworn statements from former CPP-NPA members.

The bank accounts were ordered frozen for six months by the Court of Appeals upon finding that the accounts were related to the financing of terrorism or have been used as conduits to facilitate the commission of financing of terrorism.

But according to the NUPL, independent checks and reviews by the funding agencies of the church-based organization showed these allegations were “baseless and false”.

“Despite these clearances, the RMP sisters, Dingkay, and other RMP staff have been recklessly charged before the Department of Justice by the Anti-Money Laundering Council seemingly on the mere dubious say so of polluted and ill-motivated sources and apparently on a prejudged examination of the subject accounts,” the lawyers’ group said in a press statement.

“From our perspective, this is not only weaponization of the law but weaponization against the very lawyers fighting such insidious policy and practice,” it said.

Sought for comment, Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla said, "That case build-up took two years, and the participation of each person in the acts was shown by documentary and testimonial evidence."

NUPL stood by its official and the other individuals, saying the “baseless charge of terrorist financing” against them is at the “bottom one of the many attempts to weaken the support for the advancement of the peoples' rights in Northern Mindanao”.

“Even before this incident, the young and fearless Dingkay has been a constant subject of threats and harassment offline and online. She has been vilified and demonized as a ‘terrorist’ in anonymous publications and posters, clearly hoping to stop her from defending against state repression and oppression. These attacks must end now,” it said.

“We will stand by Dingkay in all fora as we have stood by not only our persecuted clients but our very own colleagues under attack as well whose only crime is to serve the interests and welfare of the people selflessly valiantly,” it added.—LDF, GMA News