Tuesday, December 05, 2006 [ 6:05 AM ]

decision

After a year, a decision has finally been made to the epic of the subic rape case. The main accused, US marine Daniel Smith is proven guilty beyond reasonable doubt and the other three respondents to the case on the other hand were acquitted.

Many praised Judge Benjamin Pozon for his decision saying that he just proved that justice still remains in the Philippines. I agree that the decision was favorable to Nicole but something still runs at the back of my mind.


Judge Pozon convicted Smith but acquitted the other three marines. Was it not just a play safe decision? A decision that will favor both Nicole and the US government? If the court really believes that the rape happened in the van, then the three marines should be convicted as accessories to the crime. Though they did not take part in the rape, still they are there and they have the capacity to stop the crime if they wanted to. In a way, they gave their consent to Smith to do what he wanted. In the way I look at the decision, Judge Pozon made it that way to please both parties. And that‘s what is happening, the victim and protesters are happy and the US government are not furious. They would rather take that decision than something that will convict all the four accused.

It can be recalled that the removal of the three service men as accessories to the crime is just what Sec.Gonzalez wants. This guy obviously wants to please the US government for reasons we can only speculate. I believe that Judge Pozon made a very wise decision but I’m not sure if it’s the right one. If the testimonies of both parties are to be believed, I think it should be a acquit all or convict all.

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