Rescued Fil-Am activist leaves for US after medical care
LUCENA CITY—Filipino American activist Chantal Anicoche left the country for the United States last week following a reunion with her mother, the military said on Sunday.
In a statement, the Army’s 2nd Infantry Division (2ID), based at Camp Capinpin in Tanay, Rizal, said Anicoche was reunited with her mother at the military headquarters on Jan. 30 before departing the country later that night.
“The family immediately flew back to US territory on Friday night, Jan. 30,” the military said.
Army Col. Mike Aquino, spokesperson for the 2ID, said the reunion underscored “the importance of choosing peace, the unfathomable love of a mother and the value of returning to one’s family.”
“This moment reminds us that behind every conflict are families who continue to hope for the safe return of their loved ones,” Aquino said.
He added: “We continue to call on those who were deceived into fighting for a useless cause to lay down their arms, surrender and go back to their families. There is always a better path—one that leads back to safety, healing and a chance to rebuild lives,” Aquino added.
Anicoche, 25, a Filipino American community organizer and recent psychology graduate of the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, was reportedly left behind by retreating New People’s Army (NPA) members following an encounter with Army troops in Abra de Ilog, Occidental Mindoro, on Jan.1.
Medical care
She was found on Jan. 8, about 400 meters from the encounter site. The military said she had gone eight days without food and water.
Anicoche was immediately brought to a military hospital for medical treatment.
According to the military, Anicoche executed an affidavit in the presence of an independent lawyer from the Integrated Bar of the Philippines, expressing her intention to remain at the facility to continue receiving medical care.
During her stay, representatives from the Commission on Human Rights and the International Committee of the Red Cross visited her on Jan. 24.
Aquino earlier dismissed online claims that Anicoche was being detained, describing them as “false and misleading.”
He criticized what he described as attempts by some groups to use Anicoche’s stay inside a military camp as a “propaganda narrative,” while allegedly ignoring the circumstances under which she was rescued.
“She was left alone for several days before soldiers found and rescued her,” Aquino said.
‘Lawful process’
In a separate statement, the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-Elcac) said Anicoche’s departure from the country was in compliance with an “order to leave” issued by the Bureau of Immigration, following lawful processing and interagency coordination.
“This development concludes the Philippine government’s security and administrative handling of her situation,” said Undersecretary Ernesto Torres Jr., NTF-Elcac executive director.
Torres stressed that the order to leave “is an immigration measure grounded in law.”
“It is not a declaration of innocence, nor an endorsement of narratives that attempt to portray this case as political persecution or heroism,” he added.
The NTF-Elcac further clarified that the decision “was neither arbitrary nor political in nature.”
Human rights group Karapatan, however, criticized the NTF-Elcac’s explanation for Anicoche’s departure.
In a statement emailed to the Inquirer, Karapatan secretary general Cristina Palabay said the order to leave implies that Anicoche was considered an “undesirable alien” by the Philippine government due to her alleged affiliations with the Communist Party of the Philippines and the NPA.
Palabay also said the NTF-Elcac statement contained what she described as “veiled threats,” suggesting that Anicoche could face risks or possible persecution upon her return to the United States based on her supposed admissions.
“The fact remains that Anicoche should have been immediately released by the military since there were no pending cases against her,” Palabay said.
She added that videos released by the military showing Anicoche’s alleged discovery in a shallow, thicket-covered hole indicated that she was unarmed and was not in the act of committing any crime at the time.
