Relatives mark 100th day since botanist’s death; call for speedy probe

MANILA, Philippines — Relatives and friends of slain botanist Leonard Co on Tuesday commemorated the 100th day since his death by calling for a “speedy and impartial reinvestigation” of his killing and his companions in Kananga, Leyte, in November last year.

“We come here in front of the Department of Justice to call on Secretary Leila de Lima for a speedy and impartial investigation of the case. One hundred days of waiting is too long for justice to be served for the three victims,” said Dr. Giovanni Tapang, convenor of the Justice for Leonard Co Movement in a statement.

At a small rally outside the Justice Department, they also called on De Lima to replace Assistant Prosecutor Bryan Cacha in the new investigating panel she created, noting that the prosecutor was already part of the original DOJ-National Bureau of Investigation team that had cleared the military of accountability in the killings.

In a press conference, De Lima said she had already replaced Cacha, admitting that it was an oversight on her part when he was again included in the new panel.

While the DOJ-NBI panel said Co and his companions were killed in an encounter between the military's 19th Infantry Battalion and communist insurgents, the botanist's supporters believe that the soldiers were liable for the deaths.

Co, forester Sofronio Cortez and guide Julio Borromeo were killed while collecting specimen seedlings of endangered trees for replanting in the Manawan-Kananga Watershed in Leyte for the Lopez-owned Energy Development Corp.

Two of their companions survived.

source: Inquirer