“It is not only untrue, it also perpetuates the dangerous narrative that journalists are communists or rebel sympathizers for reporting that (which) does not parrot what the government says. It (is) also the kind of labeling that has raised concerns over how the Anti-Terrorism Act will be implemented."
“We commend the decision of the court and we hope this will presage more releases of political prisoners who are foisted with trumped-up charges in retaliation for their activism or to make them the fall guy to take the blame for NPA operations.”
NTF-ELCAC spokesperson for mass media engagements, Undersecretary Jose Joel Sy Egco (File photo) MANILA - Contrary to misleading reports, New People's Army (NPA) assassin and convicted murderer Juanito Itaas has never been and will never be considered a "political prisoner" but a cold-blooded killer who served his sentence under the law. Itaas, according to the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC), is a convicted murderer of United States Army Col. James N. Rowe and should not be given any romantic attribution that tends to mislead the public. NTF-ELCAC spokesperson for mass media engagements and fact-checker, Undersecretary Jose Joel Sy Egco, a journalist for nearly three decades, cautioned journalists not to brand Itaas as a "political prisoner" as he was found guilty beyond reasonable doubt by Branch 88 of the Quezon City Regional Trial Court (RTC) for the murder of Rowe, the deputy commander of the Joint US Military Advisory
Political prisoner Juanito Itaas (pic) has been released by authorities after over 32 years of incarceration, human rights group Kapatid said in a statement