[api-la] 11/26 Los Angeles, CA: GABNet Statement Against Victims of Rape by US Soliders

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[api-la] 11/26 Los Angeles, CA: GABNet Statement Against Victims of Rape by US Soliders

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STATEMENT
November 27, 2006
Reference:  Dr. Annalisa Enrile campaigns@gabnet.org

Gabriela Network Stands in Solidarity with Nicole and Other Victims of Rape Perpetrated by US Servicemen

 

On November 1, 2005, a young Filipina was allegedly raped by four US servicemen in the military zone of the Philippines known as Subic Bay.  The victim identified only as "Nicole" states that she was dragged into a van and raped by US Marine Corporal Daniel Smith while three other soldiers – US Marine Corporals Keith Silkwood, Dominic Duplantis, and Staff Sergeant Chad Brian Carpentier - cheered him on.  She was then dumped out of the van on the side of an unfamiliar road.

 

For over a year now, bureaucratic blundering and victim blaming has been rife in the case of Nicole.  Media outlets have blamed the victim for being raped because of the way she "may have flirted" or the way she was dressed.  An American soldier was allowed on Philippine television to accuse her of being a prostitute during coverage of a women's rally, as if that offered an excuse for the servicemen's sexual abuse and behavior.  The victim's lawyers even offered the family of Nicole hush money and a "possible sojourn in the US" as a way to bribe her out of pursuing her case.  In spite of the insults and backward remarks made against the victim, as well as the unprofessional behavior of some of Nicole's defense team, she remains steadfast and vows "I am going to pursue the case until the guilty parties are convicted."

 

It is not simply the victim blaming that has occurred that has made bringing the four servicemen to justice an almost impossible feat.  The Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA) in the case of Nicole, has proven itself to be a direct attack on the Philippine's sovereignty. 

 

The Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA) is an agreement between the US and Philippine governments that went into effect in 1999.  The VFA reintroduced the US military into the Philippines after they were democratically kicked out by the Filipino people in the 1980s.  The mass movement in the 1980s opposed the US military for numerous reasons such as the toxic waste that accumulated in and around the military bases, as well as the prostitution and sexual abuses by servicemen promulgated by the bases mere presence.  Thus, not only has the VFA reintroduced the US military to Philippine soil, it has reintroduced the same social problems the military bases spread before.  The VFA has complicated matters further in the case of Nicole, with the US military citing VFA articles as their reason for not having to turn over the four accused servicemen to Philippine officials.  Even in the event of a conviction, the United States will cite other components of the VFA to argue that the servicemen do not need to be handed over and placed in Philippine custody, even though they would be proven rapists who have committed a crime on Philippine soil.

 

WE commemorate November 25^th as the International Day to Eliminate Violence Against Women by standing in vigilant solidarity with Nicole as she awaits the verdict of her case.  We call for justice for Nicole and demand US Troops out of the Philippines Now!

 

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GABRIELA Network
Irvine, Los Angeles, & San Diego Chapters
Riverside Organizing Committee
 

JUSTICE FOR "NICOLE" CANDLELIGHT VIGIL
TONIGHT Sunday, November 26th, 2006; 5-7pm
 
Miramar Marine Corps Air Station in San Diego
Across the Street From the North Gate
*On the Northwest Corner of
Miramar Road and Clayton Drive
 
*Carpools available
 
 
The case of 22 year old "Nicole" is coming to an end and we will stand with her
as she awaits the verdict.  She was allegedly raped by 4 U.S. Marines in Subic Bay,
a former U.S. Naval Base.  Her case is an example of countless women who have

been brutalized by the continuing U.S. Military presence in the Philippines.
 
 
STAND WITH US AS WE DEMAND JUSTICE FOR "NICOLE"!
 
 
For More Information:
www.gabnet.org  
losangeles@gabnet.org
951.333.4306


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GABRIELA Network - Los Angeles Chapter
A US-Philippine Women's Solidarity Mass Organization
PO Box 3032
Cerritos, CA 90703-3032
email: losangeles@gabnet.org
web: www.gabnet.org
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*** GABRIELA Network is a Philippine-US women's solidarity mass organization
since 1989. GABNet provides the means by which Filipinas in the US can
empower themselves, functions as training ground for women's leadership,
and articulates the women's point of view. GABNet effects change through
organizing, educating, fundraising, networking, and advocacy.

GABRIELA stands for...
General
Assembly
Binding women for
Reform,
Integrity,
Equality,
Leadership and
Action

It also commemorates Gabriela Silang, known as one of the first and
fiercest women generals in the Philippines who led the longest series of
successful revolts against 18th Century Spanish colonizers.

GABNet-US is an all-volunteer organization of women with chapters in
Chicago, Irvine, Los Angeles, New Jersey/New York, Portland, San Diego,
San Francisco/Bay Area, and Washington D.C. ***

 

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