A ranking military officer was arrested five years after he was implicated in the torture of a baker in Basilan in 2011. The police served the warrant of arrest against Capt.  Sherwin William Guidangen in Maysilo Circle, Boni Avenue in Mandaluyong City on March 8, 2016.  He was charged for violating the Anti-Torture Act as well as for Maltreatment of Prisoner- an offense   punishable under the Revised Penal  Code.

The United against Torture Coalition has expressed support to the policy of president-elect  Rodrigo Duterte to rid the ranks of the Philippine National Police  of corruption and to severe all  alleged  links of law enforcers with criminal groups in effectively  fulfilling their  mission to protect the rights and security of the public.

For more than thirty years DIGNITY – the Danish Institute Against Torture – has specialized in the prevention of torture and ill-treatment, and the rehabilitation of torture survivors. International collaboration with human rights organizations like Balay, aimed at diminishing the after-effects of torture and preventing the use of torture and ill treatment, is at the heart of DIGNITY’s work.

“Today, the IRCT joins hands with Balay and the United Against Torture Coalition in commemorating the UN International Day in Support of Torture Victims. We honour the memory of all those who are no longer with us, and continue to support those who still are. We pay tribute to the commitment, tireless effort and excellent work done by NGOs and civil society organisations in the Philippines in fighting torture and impunity.