Rape case cast shadow on US forces

Philippine authorities say the evidence is strong against six US service men accused of gang-raping a 22-year-old Filipino at Subic Bay north of Manila, a local newspaper reported on Friday.

There were witnesses, including the Filipino driver of a rented van where the alleged rape took place on Tuesday after an annual US-Philippine joint military exercise, and a condom was found inside the van, the Philippine Daily Inquirer quoted Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) administrator Armand Arreza as saying.

Charges were filed against the US service men on Thursday afternoon, Arreza said, with the preliminary hearing set for early next week, possibly Monday.

The complaint filed with the local prosecutor's office identified the US service men as Keith Silkwood, Daniel Smith, Albert Lara, Dominic Duplantis, Corey Barris and Chad Carpenter.

"We were able to successfully convince them not to leave with the ship, but we couldn't keep them because there were no arrest warrants issued yet," Arreza said. "We don't have that authority. It is the courts that issue them."

In the case of arrest warrants being served, it is up to the department of justice to serve them, he said.

The SBMA is extending legal and accommodation assistance to the woman, who is from Zamboanga, Mindanao in the southern Philippines and was just on holiday in Subic, said Arreza.

"She's staying until the preliminary hearing," he said, adding that the woman's brother has already arrived in Subic from their hometown, and their parents are expected to arrive this weekend.

On Thursday, the six US Marine service men were barred from boarding their departing ship after a witness identified them as the culprits in the alleged gang rape on All Saints' Day.

Authorities earlier said in a statement the alleged victim was in a karaoke bar when she met some Americans who invited her to go with them in a rented van. A few hours later, witnesses said they saw the woman being dumped unconscious from a van on a road.

The woman is said to be from a well-off family in the southern Philippine province, according to a foreign affairs official who asked not to be named. He added that the six accused Americans are not officers, but enlisted personnel.

A US-Philippine relations expert said the case is "one of the worst case scenarios you could expect under the VFA."

Ratified in 1999, The Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA) is the document that details the rules on the treatment of US armed forces visiting the Philippines for joint military exercises with Philippine troops.

The agreement gives the US military access to Philippine ports and airports for refuelling, supplies, repairs, and rest and recreation.

The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) on Friday said the alleged rape case will have no impact on military drills between Philippine and US troops in this former US naval base.

Tristan Quizon, chief of the AFP public information office, said the alleged rape was an isolated issue that concerns individuals, not the "Balikatan", according to an updated report on the website of the Philippine Daily Inquirer.

"Balikatan", meaning "shoulder by shoulder", refers to the codename of annual US-Philippine bilateral joint military exercises held in Subic Bay.

Later on Friday afternoon, about 30 activists from a Filipino students and women's rights group carried banners saying "US troops out now!" as they tried to march to the US embassy in Manila. They were stopped by police.

Source: China Daily