JAMBY TO APPEAR BEFORE INTERNATIONAL
COURT TO TRY GLORIA

I have accepted the invitation of the People's Permanent Tribunal in Hague, The Netherlands to give a report on the human rights problems in the Philippines and observe the indictment proceedings against Mrs. Gloria Arroyo. This international court to be convened by jurists and persons of proven independence is the same tribunal that indicted former President Marcos in 1981 for crimes against humanity.

As a Filipino and human rights advocate, it is my duty to bring the issue of human rights violations in the Philippines in all forums and ensure that repression and oppression will come to end. In this quest for justice, I shall be joined by relatives and survivors of human rights victims, the Public Interest Law Center, Peace for Life, Philippine Peace Center, IBON Foundation, United Church of Christ in the Philippines and the Ecumenical Bishops Forum.

The People's Permanent Tribunal is an international body that examines and judges complaints regarding violations of human rights and rights of peoples that are submitted by the victims themselves or groups representing them. The tribunal was founded in June 1979 in Italy by law experts, writers and other intellectuals. It succeeded the Russell Tribunals I and II or the International War Crimes Tribunal which held two sessions in 1967 to expose the war crimes committed against the Vietnamese people.