U.S. troops given time in rape case

U.S. troops given time in rape case

Roli Ng, Reuters/Olongapo City, Philippines

Philippine prosecutors give lawyers for six U.S. Marines until Nov. 29 to answer a rape complaint filed by a Filipino woman, a case testing the strength of relations with the United States.

Prosecutors are investigating the allegations that the soldiers, who had participated in two weeks of joint military exercises, gang-raped a 22-year-old woman in a van on Nov. 1 at the former American navy base at Subic Bay northwest of Manila.

The Philippines, battling Muslim and communist insurgencies, is a former U.S. colony and a major ally to Washington in the region. While both sides say the alleged rape will do nothing to hurt close ties, the case has churned up anti-U.S. sentiment.

Hundreds of members of a leftist women's group and a smaller number of pro-American demonstrators held separate rallies outside Olongapo City hall of justice, where prosecutors received copies of the complaint and affidavits from several witnesses.

"We would give them up to Nov. 29 to file counter-affidavits on the rape complaint," Prudencio Jalandoni, head of the city prosecutor's office, said on Wednesday. He added that his team was rushing to resolve the case within a prescribed 60-day deadline.

The woman who filed the complaint did not attend the preliminary hearing. Her five lawyers, all women, submitted a fresh affidavit from a witness who gave a more detailed account of what she saw on the night of the alleged crime.

The soldiers, who have not been charged and are being held under the custody of the U.S. embassy, did not appear.

An embassy spokesman, Matthew Lussenhop, said the six Marines had filed sworn statements at the prosecutor's office on Wednesday. But their lawyers did not submit the affidavits due to the additional testimony given by the woman's lawyers.

"The physical presence of the Marines today was not required by the office of the city prosecutor," Lussenhop told reporters. He said the embassy had yet to respond to a request from the Philippine foreign affairs department to take custody of the six soldiers.

In a statement read out by Lussenhop, the U.S. embassy said it would cooperate closely with Philippine authorities "to ensure the case is handled fairly and that justice is done".

Outside the hall of justice, protesters waved banners and placards demanding an end to a treaty -- the Visiting Forces Agreement -- that allows U.S. soldiers to train, advise and conduct exercises with Philippine troops.

"We're here to keep a tight watch on the legal proceedings," said Lotlot Requiso, a spokeswoman for Kaisa (Oneness), a women's rights group. "We believe that justice would not be served well if we were not here monitoring the hearing."

Relations soured in the early 1990s when Philippine senators terminated a treaty allowing U.S. forces to keep huge naval and air bases in the country, and Washington cut military aid to the poor Southeast Asian state.

The links were repaired when the Philippine Senate ratified the Visiting Forces Agreement in 1999.

"This is a test case for our two countries' relations," said Raymond Viray, an assistant prosecutor. "This is the first time we are investigating U.S. soldiers under the Visiting Forces Agreement treaty."