France Castro, 'Talaingod 18' to appeal child abuse conviction at CA

MANILA, Philippines — Rep. France Castro (ACT-Teachers), former Rep. Satur Ocampo (Bayan Muna Partylist) and other convicted individuals of the "Talaingod 18" have notified the court of their plan to appeal its ruling finding them guilty of endangering children.

Castro and the others requested this from Tagum Regional Trial Court (RTC) Branch 2 in a five-page plea filed on Monday, asking that the Tagum Court forward the case records to the Court of Appeals.

This means that the group will not file a motion for reconsideration to overturn their conviction, which would be done in the same court.

In a statement, Castro called the RTC decision "unacceptable," saying that the military and paramilitary groups who harass the Lumad schools and students remain free.

"Where is the justice in that? Even now, Lumad communities are still being threatened and harassed by the military," Castro said.

On July 15, the Tagum RTC found Castro, Ocampo and the other accused teachers guilty of violating Section 10 (a) of Republic Act 7610, or the Special Protection of Children Against Abuse, Exploitation and Discrimination Act, for endangering minors during a "solidarity mission" in November 2018.

They were sentenced to four to six years in jail.

In addition to imprisonment, they were ordered to pay P10,000 in civil indemnity and P10,000 in moral damages to each of the 14 minors involved. The amount will also accrue interest at a rate of 6% per annum until fully paid.

Progressive groups condemned the court conviction, calling it a "dangerous precedent" that may have a chilling effect on human rights workers and activists.