AFP to try Trillanes at General Court Martial »Manila Bulletin News

By Martin Sadongdong

Senator Antonio Trillanes IV will likely be tried at a General Court Martial that the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) are forming, an army spokesman said Friday.

AFP spokesman Colonel Edgard Arevalo said the army was creating a general court martial to hear the case of Trillanes, who returned to military service after the revocation of his amnesty. Trillanes is a former senior lieutenant of the Philippine Navy.

"The AFP is in the process of forming the General Court Martial in accordance with the task prescribed by Presidential Proclamation 572," Arevalo said.

A General Court Martial is one of three types of military tribunals – and the most serious, usually formed to hear serious crimes or offenses committed by military officers and sanctioned by war articles.

President Duterte ordered the army and police to exhaust all legal means of arresting Trillanes after the amnesty of the opposition senator had been annulled or invalid from the beginning by the presidential proclamation 572.

The President stated that Trillanes failed to file an official amnesty form and "never expressed his guilt", a condition necessary to seek an amnesty, for the Oakwood mutiny in 2003 and the Manila Peninsula headquarters in 2007.

Trillanes has been charged with violation of the war article 96 or improper conduct (sic) of an officer and a gentleman and an article of war 97 or d. conduct detrimental to good order and military discipline.

However, the media coverage of Trillanes' amnesty application in 2011 appeared online while his amnesty application form, which was certified "missing" by the military, is still being sought by the Ministry of Defense national.

Regarding the army, Arevalo said that AFP, as an institution, "is united and committed to the chain of command and the rule of law."

"AFP is aware that Senator Trillanes IV has already filed his application in the Supreme Court. We will postpone the observations on the merits of the case in accordance with the rule of sub judice (under judicial review), "he said.

Similarly, DND spokesman Arsenio Andolong said the Department of Defense had already received a report that Trillanes had filed a petition for certiorari, prohibition and injunction with an application for a temporary restraining order the Supreme Court.