Justice For Leonard Co: Solons doubt botanist killed in crossfire, seek probe

Tuesday, November 9, 2010

Solons doubt botanist killed in crossfire, seek probe

By Lira Dalangin-Fernandez
INQUIRER.net
First Posted 11:13:00 11/19/2010

MANILA, Philippines – Militant lawmakers at the House of Representatives said on Friday they doubted that one of the country’s top botanists was killed in a crossfire between the rebels and military and were seeking an investigation.

Filing two resolutions, Representative Rafael Mariano of Anakpawis partylist and Representatives Neri Colmenares and Teddy Casino of Bayan Muna partylist asked the committee on human rights to immediately set a hearing to determine the circumstances behind Leonardo L. Co’s death.

Co, a specialist in plant taxonomy and ethonobotany, is the president of the Philippine Native Plants and Conservation Society and biodiversity consultant of the Lopez-owned Energy Development Corp. (EDC).

He was gathering specimen seedlings of endangered trees with a five-member team of civilians when he was shot, in an alleged encounter in Kananga, Leyte on Monday.

The other fatalities were identified as Sofronio G. Cortez, a forest guard of EDC-Environmental Management Division, and Julius Borromeo, a member of the Tongonan Farmers Association (Tofa).

House Resolution 653 of Anakpawis said Co’s demise “was a big loss for the country since we have only a few taxonomists in the country.”

In seeking an investigation, the resolution quoted the companion of Co, Policarpio Balute, a member of Tofa, who survived the incident that “the shooting started in Upper Mahiao, Barangay Lim-ao.” He added that he “did not hear any responding volley of gunfire from any direction that could indicate an on-going battle between Army soldiers and New People’s Army (NPA).”

Mariano said that “based on the Rules of War and International Humanitarian Law, the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) should have first ensured the safety and protection of civilians in the armed conflict.”

“Serious doubts have been raised over the legitimacy of the military operation. The circumstances of the demise of Co and his companions are perceived as a case of mistaken identity,” the resolution added.

House Resolution 660 of Bayan Muna said, “It is important for Congress to ascertain the truth behind the killing of Co, considering that despite the change in the administration, extrajudicial killings of suspected rebels by state security forces remain unabated.”

“Such an investigation is warranted in order for Congress to craft measures and make recommendations to put a stop to the killings,” it added.

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About Leonardo Co (许振忠)

Leonardo L. Co (29 December 1953-15 November 2010) was a Chinese-Filipino scientist specializing in ethnobotany and plant taxonomy.

Prior to his death, he was the president of the Philippine Native Plants Conservation Society, Inc. He is an internationally renowned botanist who discovered a number of endemic plant species in the Philippines, particularly the Rafflesia leonardi (named after him), which is one of the largest flowers in the world.

Education
Co studied at the University of the Philippines, Diliman (UP-Diliman) in 1972, taking up the bachelor of science in botany (BS Botany) degree. A passionate student of botany, he also joined the Samahan ng mga Mag-aaral sa Pilipino (Association of Students of Filipino, or SAMAPIL), a UP-Diliman based organization of Filipino student writers.

In 1977, Co wrote the A Manual on some Philippine Medicinal Plants published by the UP Botanical Society. However, he failed to graduate during that year because he reportedly failed in either his physics or math subjects.

In 2009, the UP Board of Regents awarded Co his BS Botany degree due to his contribution in the field of botany. He was the last recipient of the said degree, since BS Botany is no longer offered by the university.

Career
Co was a botanist for Conservation International-Philippines. He is also a former member of the Community Health, Education, Services and Training in Cordillera Region (Chestcore) in 1981, where he authored the book Common Medicinal Plants in the Cordillera Region: A Trainor’s Manual for Community-Based Health Programs, which described more than 120 endemic medicinal plants in the region.

In 2004, Co wrote the book Palanan forest dynamics plot: floristic diversity and stand structure of a lowland evergreen forest in N.E. Luzon, Philippines, which probed the biodiversity of Palanan, Isabela.

Co has also advocated the planting of native trees along main thoroughfares and tourist attractions in the country. His advocacy bore fruit along the North Luzon Expressway, where 32 native tree seedlings were planted in 2007. Furthermore, native trees were also planted in Puerto Princesa City, Palawan and in the UP-Diliman campus.

He has also led the discovery of a number of endemic orchid species in Palawan. He also clarified the classification of the balayong tree, popularly known in the province as the Palawan cherry, which, according to Co, is not a cherry (Prunus) but a legume from the Fabaceae family.

In 2008, Co led the discovery of the Rafflesia leonardi, the fourth species of the Rafflesia family in Luzon, and eighth in the Philippines. The rafflesia is considered to be the largest species of flower in the world.

Death
Working as a consultant for a reforestation project of the Energy Development Corporation, Co, along with four companions, were conducting a research in a forest in Kananga, Leyte when an alleged crossfire between the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) and rebel group New People's Army occured. Co, together with forest guard Sofronio Cortez and local farmer Julius Borromeo, were killed. Farmer Policarpio Balute and forester Ronino Gibe survived the crossfire. Co's group were caught in the skirmish despite having a security clearance in entering the site.

Authorities have yet to be determine who killed Co, Cortez, and Borromeo. The AFP stated that they did not target Co's group during the crossfire. Co is survived by wife Glenda and daughter Linnaei Marie.

Legacy
Co is considered to be the foremost authority in ethnobotany in the Philippines. According to wildlife biologist Dr. Perry Ong, "Leonard was one of the country's greatest plant taxonomists. His opinion on taxonomic issues was sought after by experts. His encyclopedic memory of plants was unequaled. You could ask him the name of a plant and he would tell you its relationship with other plants and give you the reference. A great loss to the country and to the conservation community."

Environmentalist and writer Ben Vallejo described Co as someone who advocated the "classical way of learning biodiversity, like looking at plants and animals and closely observing them."

His body is planned to be cremated on 20 November 2010 and will be scattered in Palanan and in a tree in the UP Diliman campus.

Source: http://en.wikipilipinas.org/index.php?title=Leonardo_Co