Political killings traced to Philippine military

There is also disagreement over the extent of the violence. Karapatan, a leftist human rights watchdog, has recorded over 800 killings since 2001, but observers say that number is inflated and includes dozens of nonpolitical murders and undocumented cases. Alston declined to provide an estimate, but said the total was "high enough to be distressing."

A police task force set up last year to probe the violence has pinned much of the blame on the CPP itself. Deputy Director General Avelino Razon, who oversees the task force, says that most documented killings of left-wing activists were carried out by Communist forces, not the security forces.

"We think they're doing a series of purges, and this is timed during a government campaign against their insurgency," he says, referring to an all-out war that Arroyo declared last year against the CPP.

General Razon says police and Army personnel were involved in a few murder cases, but insists they were acting alone. "If we have evidence of orders from above, we would file charges against the officer issuing the orders," he says.

Unsurprisingly, this is vigorously disputed by leftist groups who accuse the police of a whitewash. Teodoro Casino is one of six left-wing lawmakers who were charged with rebellion last year after Arroyo declared a state of emergency. A court later overturned the charges. Mr. Casino says the administration's hand is clearly seen in the violence.

"You can't attribute widespread killings to a few generals. It has to go all the way up. It's the government's counterinsurgency policy that's provided the environment for these human rights abuses to take place," he says.

Casino's complaint is echoed not only in political circles but also within the influential Roman Catholic church. Bishop Deogracias Iniguez, head of public affairs for the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines, says Arroyo, a devout Catholic, is quick to smear her opponents. Many priests have been accused of Communist sympathies in the past – some of whom have turned up dead.

"In the Philippines, if you are against the government, then you're associated with the left-wing groups," he says.

The presence of legal leftist organizations in the Philippines is a legacy of a 1990s peace initiative to bring activists into the political arena and cut ties with armed insurgents. Security officials say these ties persist and accuse left-wing lawmakers of channeling Congressional funds to their comrades. Casino denies this accusation.

Even Arroyo's critics concede that a tough response is needed to counter the NPA and its frequent attacks on government targets. But declaring all-out war on Communists and tarring all activists with the same brush isn't the way forward, says Randy David, a newspaper columnist and sociologist at the University of the Philippines.

"This is a terrible approach to the insurgency. Those who are already in the underground may even welcome this. It focuses attention on their struggle, and in the long term it forces people to go underground," he says.

Page: 1 | 2