Jirin Hattimon (second from left), his wife Jaiham (left), Commissioner Edil Baddiri of the National Commission for Muslim Filipinos (center), and Hattimon's relatives. Photo courtesy of Commissioner Edil Baddiri.
IN 2012, JIRIN HATTIMON was living a blissful life, having just married a woman his family had also learned to love. Then 34, he was eager to start his own family in Sulu. But the farmer's plans were rudely interrupted when policemen accosted him while he was walking near the pier sometime in April.
Jirin was flown to Manila and detained at the Special Intensive Care Area of Camp Bagong Diwa in Bicutan, along with some of the most wanted people in the country.
The police called him "Black Tungkang", supposedly a top leader of the bandit group Abu Sayyaf with a P3.3-million bounty for his involvement in the abduction of some members of the Jehovah’s Witness in 2002. He was charged in court.
Two 'Black Tungkangs'
Jirin was detained not far from a man named Abdullah Ussih, who was also accused of being "Black Tungkang". Ussih was arrested just two months before him.
When the two "Black Tungkangs" were presented to kidnap victim Amily Mantec, she said neither Jirin nor Ussih was involved in her abduction. They didn’t even bear any physical resemblance to the wanted Abu Sayyaf leader.
Ussih was released in 2013. But it forced the police to pin down Jirin. The police insisted he was "Black Tungkang".
Mistaken identity
But in a court order dated June 10, 2015, Pasig Regional Trial Court (RTC) Judge Toribio Ilao, Jr. gave weight to the testimony of kidnap victim Mantec.
“The Jail Warden…is ordered to immediately release from custody Jirin Hattimon who was mistaken for Black Tungkang,” the order said.
Kudairi Abdulla (wearing yellow shirt), another victim of mistaken identity, has also been released. Photo courtesy of NCMF Commissioner Edil Baddiri
Jirin, now 37, is the second person released since June in a case of mistaken identity. The other one was Kudairi Abdulla, accused of involvement in the 2001 Dos Palmas kidnapping case. He was released last June 12.
Last March, an ABS-CBN Investigative report uncovered 51 wrongful arrests since 2004 in government’s fight against terrorism. Most of the men had rewards for their capture, ranging from P150,000 to P3.3 million.
It took over three weeks to process clearances to ensure Jirin had no other pending case anywhere in the country.
Jirin finally walked a free man on July 3. It was time to go home to Sulu.
Jirin Hattimon is finally a free man after 3 years.
Jirin was smiling but silent when he left the maximum security compound after three long years.
He was accompanied by Commissioner Edil Baddiri of the National Commission for Muslim Filipinos (NCMF) whose office had to scrape funds to purchase a ticket to Zamboanga that would allow Jirin to reunite with his family.
Jirin carried two bags: one contained clothes; the other had a Quran and other books. But he received not a single centavo in damages from the law enforcers that ruined his life, not even an apology.
P10,000 for years of injustice
Under RA 7309 or the Victims Compensation Program, victims of unjust imprisonment may be entitled to a maximum of P10,000 as a symbol of “government’s desire to alleviate the plight of the victims… for the injustice that cost them precious years that should have been shared with their family instead of prison cells,” reads Justice Secretary Leila de Lima’s opening message in the Handbook for this program.
But in order to qualify for the claim, the victim must have been unjustly accused,
convicted, imprisoned and subsequently acquitted. Or, the victim must have been unjustly detained and released without being charged.
Baddiri said Jirin does not qualify for the compensation because he was charged in court and was not convicted.
Baddiri confirmed there was nothing in the law that provided timely compensation for victims of mistaken identity. “The way the Board of Claims has interpreted the law, yung cases nila hindi ma-cocover,” Baddiri said.
Half a million pesos per day
The Human Security Act of 2007 provides stiff penalties for unproven charges of terrorism, with damages running to half a million pesos for every day spent in prison.
But Jirin does not qualify for damages under the Human Security Act, either. “For the Human Security Act to apply, you should be charged under that law. Not all kidnapping is terrorism. The crime charged here is under the Revised Penal Code,” Baddiri said.
Stemming the tide
The NCMF has been lobbying for amendments to RA 7309 to include compensation for victims of wrongful arrest.
“There should be an after care program for these victims. Then the next aspect is to make accountable those responsible (for the wrongful arrest), just to stem the tide. Maraming nakakalaya tapos huli ng huli so parami ng parami yung nasa loob ng kulungan,” Baddiri said.
One option available to victims to enable them to collect damages is to file civil and criminal charges against those who made the wrongful arrest. But it would be a long, tedious and expensive process.
Jirin for one has no interest in going after his perpetrators.
For now, all he wants is to live in peace and enjoy his freedom with his wife and family.
http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/focus/07/09/15/mistaken-identity-judge-frees-abu-sayyaf-after-3-years
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