A MUSLIM FILIPINO SUES PHILIPPINES POLICEMAN FOR FALSE ARREST

Illustrated photo of muslim filipino believed to be a member of Abu Syyaf

MANILA, Philippines - A Christian who embraced Islam filed charges against police officers who arrested him, believing he was a member of Al Qaida-linked terror group Abu Sayyaf in northern suburban Bulacan in 2006, radio and TV reports have said.
"I have experienced many forms of torture. I was stepped on, burned on several parts of my body, and my head was covered by plastic bag. I was forced to admit that I was a terrorist," Allan Almoite, also known as Ali Bin Nasser, said on radio and TV interviews. He filed a case demanding 470 million pesos (Dh39.62 million) in damages against the Philippine National Police in Quezon City.

• The basis of his demand was the country's 2007 Human Security Act which says that a person who was mistakenly arrested and jailed can get 500,000 pesos for each day of incarceration.
• "I was arrested because my name was similar to the name of a person they were looking for," said Almoite.
• "It's not true that if my name is Ali, I am already a terrorist. It's not true that all members of Balik Islam (those who have embraced Islam])are terrorists. Where is justice [for us who are innocent but mistaken as terrorists]?" Almoite asked.

His mother Felicidad Almoite also said on TV, "Our neighbours considered us as outcasts. They did not talk to us. We also lost our jobs."
Almoite was incarcerated between 2006 and 2009. But in 2009, the Valenzuela Regional Trial Court ruled that there is no evidence linking Almoite to the Abu Sayyaf group.

Source: The Agencies