Philippine govt to assist woman allegedly raped by US marines

The Philippine government said on Saturday it is ready to provide assistance to the 22-year-old woman who accused five US marines of raping her on Tuesday in the Subic Bay former US navy base.

Presidential spokesman Ignacio Bunye said the Philippine authorities would accord whatever assistance the alleged victim would need during the prosecution of the case.

He also said the government would seek full justice for the victim and dignity for the country.

"Philippine criminal justice will prevail," Bunye said.

A student from the southern city of Zamboanga, the alleged victim said she was visiting her step-sister in Subic Bay when she was raped by one US marine Tuesday night in a van and then dumped unconscious on the road.

The driver of the van also told authorities that the woman was raped. Authorities said medical checks showed she was badly bruised and could have suffered from acts of brutality.

Officials at the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority said based on the complainant's sworn statement, only one of the five accused actually raped the woman but the four could be equally guilty for conspiracy to commit the crime.

The five US soldiers were identified as Keith Silkwood, Daniel Smith, Albert Lara, Corey Barris and Chad Carpenter. They are reportedly staying in the US embassy in Manila.

Some leftwing, women and student groups have asked for the transfer of the accused to Philippine custody and a scraping of the Filipino-US Visiting Force Agreement, signed in 1998 to allow US troops to visit the Philippines.

Some Filipino congressmen have also expressed shock of the incident, while Foreign Secretary Alberto Romulo has called for punishment of perpetrators of the crime.

Source: Xinhua