- Gerry Ortega
-
Gerardo Valeriano
"Doc Gerry" Ortega, DVMProject Director of
Bantay Kalikasan-PalawanIn office
2004–2011Member of the
Provincial Board of PalawanIn office
2001–2004Director of the
Crocodile Farming InstituteIn office
1989–2001Personal details Born August 28, 1963
PalawanDied 24 January 2011 (aged 47)
Barangay San Pedro,
Puerto Princesa, PalawanNationality Filipino Spouse(s) Patria Gloria "Patty"
Innocencio - OrtegaRelations Rafael “Totoy" Ortega
(Father, deceased)Children Five Alma mater Gregorio Araneta University Foundation Occupation Environmental Activist, Journalist, former Politician Profession Doctor of Veterinary Medicine Religion Roman Catholic Gerardo Valeriano Ortega, DVM (August 28, 1963 - January 24, 2011), better known simply as "Doc Gerry" or "Ka Gerry"[1] was a Filipino journalist, veterinarian, politician, environmental activist[2][3], and community organizer[4] best known for his work to promote crocodile farming in the Philippines[5], and for his advocacy against mining on the island of Palawan.[6] Ortega has often been lauded as a hero of the Philippine Environment[7][8][9] since he was assassinated on January 24, 2011,[10][11][12] allegedly due to his anti-mining advocacy.[13][14][15][16]
Personal life and education
Doc Gerry was born on August 28 1963, the son of Rafael “Totoy" Ortega, who was the Municipal Mayor of Aborlan, in the island province of Palawan.[1] He earned his Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree from the Gregorio Araneta University Foundation near Manila. In 1988 he married Patria Gloria "Patty" Innocencio in a church wedding in Bulacan.[16] They later had five children. The eldest, Mika Ortega, works as an Information, Education, and Communication (IEC) Officer of ABS-CBN Foundation's Kapit Bisig para sa Ilog Pasig. [6]
Ortega was a devout Roman Catholic and was one of the local leaders of the Catholic group, Couples for Christ, in Palawan.[11]
Crocodile farming pioneer (1988-2001)
In 1988 Ortega began working at the Crocodile Farming Institute (since renamed the Palawan Wildlife Rescue and Rehabilitation Center but still known widely and referred to below as the Crocodile Farm or CFI) in Irawan, Puerto Princesa, Palawan.[11] In 1989, he became the institute's director.[7]
At the time, many thought the Crocodile Farm project, which was run by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources, and Funded by the Japan International Cooperation Agency, would never succeed. But Ortega and his team made it not only viable but globally known. Ortega and his team at the CFI also received considerable media attention caught the largest saltwater crocodile in the country.[15]
In 1993 the CFI came up with the idea of farming out their crocodiles. The idea sparked considerable interest, and over 80 potential crocodile farmers applied. Nineteen of these were in attendance on February 1 to 3, 1999, when Ortega hosted the “Orientation on the Establishment of Crocodile Farms in the Philippines.” After screening applicants, the CFI gave 6 crocodile farmers their first crocodiles in early 2000. Ortega's initiative thus represented the birth of the crocodile industry in the Philippines.[5]
Entering politics (2001-2004)
Ortega resigned from his post at Crocodile Farm in time to run for a position in the Provincial Board of Palawan during the elections of 2001. He won and held that post until 2004.[16]
It was during this time that Ortega is said to have first gained access to "information and documents about widespread corruption in the provincial government of Palawan." As a result, Ortega became "the foremost critic of then Governor Mario Joel T. Reyes."[16]
In 2004, Ortega ran for Governor of Palawan, under a good governance platform. He lost. Governor Mario Joel T. Reyes was declared the winner.[16]
Environmental Advocacy and Community Organizing (2004-2011)
Uncertain about their future career, given the political and economic situation in the Philippines, he and his wife Patty briefly considered taking a job abroad.[16]
Sometime later that year, the ABS-CBN Foundation recruited Ortega to become project director of Bantay Kalikasan-Palawan.[16]
Sustainable ecotourism
In his capacity as project director of Bantay Kalikasan-Palawan, Ortega spearheaded the establishment of five community-based sustainable tourism sites operated by the community and for the community.[9]
In an interview with Philippine Star Journalist Faizza Farinna Tanggol on January 22, 2011, Dr. Ortega explained the way these projects were structured[9]:
- “All of these are the project of the community-based sustainable tourism where the support is the community and 100 percent of the profits go to the community. All of the employees, managers, and all of the workers are from the community.”
- “We do not have to destroy the environment for us to benefit from it.... We just need to take care of it so we can invite guests for them to see the natural beauty of our environment so that our countrymen will have opportunities from that. As we always say — kung may pakialam, may pakinabang.” (Whomever contributes benefits.)
The five eco-tourism projects spearheaded by Bantay-Kalikasan Palawan under Dr. Ortega are[9]:
- the Bacungan River Cruise;
- Snorkeling in Honda Bay and island-hopping at the Pambato Reef Dalubkaragatan;
- Dolphin- and Whale-watching in Puerto Princesa Bay;
- Firefly watching on the Iwahig River; and
- Ugong Rock Rock Climb and Zip Line.
Journalism (2004-2011)
At this time, Ortega also began serving as an anchor/commentator in a number of radio stations in Palawan, allowing him to promote his environmental advocacy and continue his anti-corruption campaign.[16]
Death threats
By late 2009, Ortega had begun regularly receiving death threats because of the hard-hitting nature of his radio programs, at one point prompting the family to get a bodyguard for him.[14] Puerto Princesa City Mayor Edward Hagedorn revealed that Ortega was especially concerned when at one point the threats extended to his daughters.[11]
The "Ten Million Signatures for the Banning of Mining in Palawan" campaign
In January 2011, Ortega, together with Bantay Kalikasan decided to launch a broad campaign against mining in Palawan, in response to the approval of large scale mining by the Palawan Council for Sustainable Development(PCSD) the month before. [16]
Ortega was getting ready to travel to Manila for the launching of the Ten Million Signatures Campaign for the banning of mining operations in the province of Palawan when he was assassinated.[16]
Assassination
Please be neutral when editing this highly sensitive article. It discusses a topic about which people have diverse opinions. At around 10:30 in the morning of January 24, 2011, Ortega had just finished broadcasting on his morning show "Ramatak"[17] for dwAR Radyo Mo Nationwide's (RMN)'s Palawan station dwAR [11], and was supposed to prepare for a scheduled journey to Manila to promote the Ten Million Signatures campaign. He stopped at an "Ukay Ukay" (used clothing) Thrift store in Barangay San Pedro, near the veterinary clinic he shared with his wife Patty.[16] [18]
It was here that a gunman came up behind Ortega, and shot him in the back of the head. [15][12]
Initial arrests
After a brief chase, Police apprehended the alleged shooter, Marlon Recamata[16], who confessed to the crime at the Puerto Princesa Police Office.[18]
Recamata originally claimed that the motivation for the killing was simply robbery, but numerous parties including the Committee to Protect Journalists, the Asian Human Rights Commission, Puerto Princesa Mayor Edward Hagedorn, and ABS CBN's Bantay Kalikasan, through its head Gina Lopez, pointed out that this was unlikely, given the way the murder was conducted, the fact that Ortega did not present himself as someone likely to be worth robbing. [15][16] Recamata also implicated three others in his statements: Rodolfo O. Edrad Jr., Dennis C. Aranas, and Armando R. Noel.[18] Recamata pleaded guilty to murder charges on Feb. 11, 2011. The case against him is being heard at the Puerto Princesa trial court. [17]
A second suspect, Percival Lecias, was invited for questioning by the Puerto Princesa office of the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) the day after, on January 25, 2011.
Dennis Aranas was arrested in Coron, Palawan three days after the assassination, on Jan. 28, 2011. He also confessed to the crime at the Puerto Princesa Police Office.[18]
Rodolfo Edrad Jr. surrendered to Puerto Princesa Mayor Edward Hagedorn in Lucena, Quezon on Feb. 5, 2011, and Hagedorn brought him to the National Bureau of Investigation NBI headquarters in Manila.[18] Armando Noel surrendered to the NBI at their Taft Avenue headquarters on Feb. 10, 2011.[18] Both Edrad and Noel Confessed to the crime before the NBI.[18]
Another suspect, Edwin Arandia gave himself up on Feb. 27, 2011, to Fr. Robert Reyes who accompanied him to the NBI.[18]
Further investigation
The police found the .45 caliber pistol Recamata had allegedly used to kill Ortega in a trash bin along the road, where Recamata had thrown it while trying to escape. Upon examination, it was found to be registered to former Palawan provincial administrator Romeo M. Seratubias.[16][18] A man named Arturo Regalado later surrendered to the authorities, claiming he had purchased the gun from Seratubias.[16]
News reports say that in the confession Edrad gave the NBI in Manila, he said he was a former bodyguard of former Marinduque Governor Jose Antonio N. Carrion and former Palawan Governor Mario Joel T. Reyes.[16][18] The reports said that Edrad implicated both Governor Reyes and Governor Carrion for the assassination. The reports also say Edrad additionally implicated former Coron, Palawan Mayor Mario T. Reyes Jr., and Arturo Regalado, the man who bought the gun from Atty. Seratubias.[18]
Governor Reyes later denied even having ever hired Edrad as a security aide[19], while Governor Carrion, who said Carrion was indeed a former security aide, denied ever talking to Edrad about any any plot.[19]
Dismissal of charges
In a resolution dated June 8,2011 panel of prosecutors from the Philippines' Department of Justice (DOJ) dismissed criminal charges filed against former Marinduque Governor Jose Antonio N. Carrion, former Palawan Gov. Mario Joel T. Reyes, former Palawan Mayor Mario T. Reyes, Atty Romeo Serratubias, Arturo Regalado, and Percival B. Lecias, citing "insufficiency of evidence".[18][20]
The same resolution said that there was probable cause to charge Rodolfo Edrad Jr., Armando Noel, Dennis Aranas, Arwin Arandia with murder.[20]
On July 1, 2011, Patty Ortega filed a 47-page motion for reconsideration at the Department of Justice, asking the investigating panel to recommend that charges be filed against Reyes and the five others who had been absolved by the panel, [21] arguing that those she alleged to be the "masterminds and principals" behind the killing ought to be charged, not just the ones who were charged, whom she referred to as "pawns whose participation in the murder were merely at best as accessories."[21]
Legacy
- Inspired by plans originally conceived by Dr. Ortega, local media units in Palawan, through the Alyansa ng Panlalawigang Mamamahayag Inc. (APAMAI) and the local chapter of the National Union of Journalists in the Philippines (NUJP), launched a savings and loan fund project for local their members on July 24, 2011.[22]
References
- ^ a b Arquiza, Yasmin (01/24/2011), "Gerry Ortega: From crocodile hunter to hunted crusader", GMANews.TV, http://www.gmanews.tv/story/211377/gerry-ortega-from-crocodile-hunter-to-hunted-crusader, retrieved June 19, 2011
- ^ Malakunas, Karl (Mar 6, 2011), "Battle on paradise Philippine island", Agence France Presse, http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5jtLV1sSGTev9GszM03mglePFoJvw?docId=CNG.8af33ab2d739021647d2e9209e4b18c2.2d1, retrieved June 19, 2011
- ^ Foy, Joe (March - April 2011). "The view from Ugong Rock". Watershed Sentinel (Comox, BC, Canada: Watershed Sentinel Educational Society): pp. 36–37. Archived from the original on 2011. http://wildernesscommittee.org/joe/the_view_ugong_rock_wild_times. Retrieved June 19, 2011.
- ^ "Filipino Activist Killed", Columbans Ireland, 2011, http://www.columban.com/ssc/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=181:filipino-human-rights-activist-killed&catid=93:philippines&Itemid=277, retrieved June 19, 2011
- ^ a b Mercado, Vicente P.. "Current Status of Crocodile Industry in the Republic of the Philippines". philippinecrocodile.com.ph. Crocodylus Porosus Philippines, Inc.. http://www.philippinecrocodile.com.ph/current_status_of_crocodile_industry_in_the_republ.html. Retrieved June 18, 2011.
- ^ a b Tabora, Joel, S.J. (2011/01/28). "Gerry Ortega, RIP: His Greatest Pain was Mining". taborasj. Joel Tabora, S.J.. http://taborasj.wordpress.com/2011/01/28/gerry-ortega-rip-his-greatest-pain-was-mining-2/. Retrieved June 19, 2011.
- ^ a b Houose Resolution No. 878. A RESOLUTION CONDEMNING THE SLAY OF ENVIRONMENT ADVOCATE AND BROADCAST JOURNALIST DR. GERARDO ORTEGA IN PUERTO PRINCESA, PALAWAN, IN THE MORNING OF JANUARY 24, 2011, 2011, http://www.agham.org.ph/index.php?option=com_k2&view=item&id=66:hr-878-broadcast-journalist-dr-gerardo-ortega-of-puerto-princesa&Itemid=54&tmpl=component&print=1, retrieved June 19, 2011
- ^ "Death of Doc Gerry is a great loss to Filipinos, says Paje", ZamboTimes (Zimnet Information Media Network), January 27. 2011, http://www.zambotimes.com/archives/27449-Death-of-Doc-Gerry-is-a-great-loss-to-Filipinos,-says-Paje.html
- ^ a b c d Tanggol, Faizza Farinna (2011), "Doc Gerry's legacy: Tourism with a heart", The Philippine Star, http://www.philstar.com/Article.aspx?articleId=658978&publicationSubCategoryId=87, retrieved June 12, 2011
- ^ Palisada, Stanley (01/24/2011), "Radio anchor killed in Palawan", abs-cbnnews.com, http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/nation/regions/01/24/11/radio-anchor-killed-palawan, retrieved June 19, 2011
- ^ a b c d e "Palawan broadcaster shot dead, gunman caught", GMANews.tv, 24 January, 2011, http://www.gmanews.tv/story/211319/palawan-broadcaster-shot-dead-gunman-caught, retrieved June 19, 2011
- ^ a b "Philippine broadcaster gunned down after morning show". Committee to Protect Journalists Website cpj.org. Committee to Protect Journalists. January 24, 2011. http://www.cpj.org/2011/01/philippine-broadcaster-gunned-down-after-morning-s.php. Retrieved June 19, 2011.
- ^ "PHILIPPINES: Murder of Gerry Ortega, an anti-mining activist, cannot be passed off as a robbery". Asian Human Rights Commission Website. Asian Human Rights Commission. 2011. http://reliefweb.int/node/381805. Retrieved June 19, 2011.
- ^ a b Silverio, Ina Alleco R. (January 25, 2011), "Killed for Anti-Mining Stand? Palawan’s ‘Doc Gerry’ Was Friend of Environment and the Poor", Bulatlat.com, http://bulatlat.com/main/2011/01/25/killed-for-anti-mining-stand-palawan%E2%80%99s-%E2%80%98doc-gerry%E2%80%99-was-friend-of-environment-and-the-poor/, retrieved June 19, 2011
- ^ a b c d Cohen, Mike K (2011-01-26), "Who killed Doctor Ortega, Dad?", abs-cbnnews.com, http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/insights/01/26/11/who-killed-doctor-ortega-dad, retrieved June 12, 2011
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p Affidavit of Patria Gloria A. Innocencio-Ortega, sworn before OIC Senior Deputy State Prosecutor Theodore M. Villanueva on 14th February 2011. http://www.scribd.com/doc/54448686/Supplemental-Affidavit-Complaint-Patria-Gloria-Ortega
- ^ a b "Family of slain Palawan journalist files MR against dismissal of alleged masterminds, accomplices". Center for Media Freedom and Responsibility. 2011-07-01. http://www.cmfr-phil.org/2011/07/01/family-of-slain-palawan-journalist-files-mr-against-dismissal-of-alleged-masterminds-accomplices/. Retrieved 2011-07-03.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Cruz, Neal (2011-06-28). "The assassination of Doc Gerry Ortega". As I see It. Inquirer.net. http://opinion.inquirer.net/7041/the-assassination-of-doc-gerry-ortega. Retrieved 2011-06-29.
- ^ a b Cruz, Neal (2011-06-30). "The assassination of Doc Gerry Ortega (Part 2)". As I see It. Inquirer.net. http://opinion.inquirer.net/7126/the-assassination-of-doc-gerry-ortega-part-2. Retrieved 2011-06-30.
- ^ a b Sun Star Network Exchange (June 14, 2011). "Ex-Palawan guv, 5 others absolved in radioman's death". Sun Star Manila (Tycoon Centre, Pearl Drive, Ortigas Center, Pasig City: Sun Star Publishing, Inc.). http://www.sunstar.com.ph/manila/local-news/2011/06/14/ex-palawan-guv-5-others-absolved-radiomans-death-161071. Retrieved June 29, 2011.
- ^ a b Dedace, Sophia M. (07/01/2011). "Ortega's wife asks DOJ to charge ex-Palawan gov, 5 others". GMA News Online. http://www.gmanews.tv/story/224971/regions/ortegas-wife-asks-doj-to-charge-ex-palawan-gov-5-others. Retrieved 2011-07-03.
- ^ Local media sets up loan and savings fund for members 2011-07-25 Philippine Information Agency-Palawan http://www.pia.gov.ph/?m=1&t=1&id=45276
Categories:- Filipino people stubs
- 1963 births
- 2011 deaths
- People from Palawan
- Filipino journalists
- Assassinated journalists
- Filipino politicians
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