Gypsy
06-17-2005, 23:06
Only 14 years for murder?
http://www.statesman.com/metrostate/content/gen/ap/Philippines_Rowe.html
Man for 1989 slaying of U.S. military attache to be released
By OLIVER TEVES
Associated Press Writer
MANILA, Philippines — An alleged communist hit man will be released later this month after serving a 14-year prison term for the assassination of a U.S. Army colonel in the Philippines, a human rights group said Friday.
Donato Continente has denied any role in the April 21, 1989, communist rebel ambush on Col. James "Nick" Rowe, whose vehicle was sprayed with bullets near his office in the Manila suburb of Quezon City.
The communist New People's Army has claimed responsibility for the attack on Rowe, a senior officer at Joint U.S. Military Assistance Group, which provides training and logistical support for the Philippine military. Continente, a left-wing activist, contended that he was tortured by police into confessing he was part of a surveillance team that monitored Rowe's movement.
Rowe, a native of McAllen, Texas, was a decorated Vietnam War veteran who was held in a cage for five years by the Viet Cong until he escaped in 1968. He wrote a book about the ordeal titled, "Five Years to Freedom."
Continente and co-defendant Juanito Itaas, who has admitted being a member of the communist New People's Army, were both sentenced to life in prison in 1991. The Supreme Court later affirmed Itaas' sentence and reduced Continente's to 14 years after establishing he was only an accomplice.
The human rights group Karapatan alleged that Washington has blocked moves to release Continente under the government's amnesty program and as part of a goodwill gesture in peace talks with communist rebels.
"This time, we demand that the (Gloria Macapagal) Arroyo administration respect Dona's right to be finally free," the group said in a statement. "After serving the maximum sentence for a crime he did not commit, no legal or moral justification remains for his detention."
U.S. Embassy spokeswoman Karen Kelly had no immediate comment about Continente's release, scheduled for June 28.
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June 17, 2005 - 5:21 a.m. CDT
http://www.statesman.com/metrostate/content/gen/ap/Philippines_Rowe.html
Man for 1989 slaying of U.S. military attache to be released
By OLIVER TEVES
Associated Press Writer
MANILA, Philippines — An alleged communist hit man will be released later this month after serving a 14-year prison term for the assassination of a U.S. Army colonel in the Philippines, a human rights group said Friday.
Donato Continente has denied any role in the April 21, 1989, communist rebel ambush on Col. James "Nick" Rowe, whose vehicle was sprayed with bullets near his office in the Manila suburb of Quezon City.
The communist New People's Army has claimed responsibility for the attack on Rowe, a senior officer at Joint U.S. Military Assistance Group, which provides training and logistical support for the Philippine military. Continente, a left-wing activist, contended that he was tortured by police into confessing he was part of a surveillance team that monitored Rowe's movement.
Rowe, a native of McAllen, Texas, was a decorated Vietnam War veteran who was held in a cage for five years by the Viet Cong until he escaped in 1968. He wrote a book about the ordeal titled, "Five Years to Freedom."
Continente and co-defendant Juanito Itaas, who has admitted being a member of the communist New People's Army, were both sentenced to life in prison in 1991. The Supreme Court later affirmed Itaas' sentence and reduced Continente's to 14 years after establishing he was only an accomplice.
The human rights group Karapatan alleged that Washington has blocked moves to release Continente under the government's amnesty program and as part of a goodwill gesture in peace talks with communist rebels.
"This time, we demand that the (Gloria Macapagal) Arroyo administration respect Dona's right to be finally free," the group said in a statement. "After serving the maximum sentence for a crime he did not commit, no legal or moral justification remains for his detention."
U.S. Embassy spokeswoman Karen Kelly had no immediate comment about Continente's release, scheduled for June 28.
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June 17, 2005 - 5:21 a.m. CDT