Eastern Visayas aid group leader pleads not guilty to terror financing

Upgrade to High-Speed Internet for only ₱1499/month!

Enjoy up to 100 Mbps fiber broadband, perfect for browsing, streaming, and gaming.

Visit Suniway.ph to learn

This is AI generated summarization, which may have errors. For context, always refer to the full article.

Jasmin Jerusalem, head of an award-winning aid group in Eastern Visayas, faces a court, calls the case arbitrary, and warns it threatens vital aid work in disaster-hit areas

TACLOBAN, Philippines – The executive director of a humanitarian organization in Eastern Visayas pleaded not guilty on Monday, July 14, to terrorism financing charges, denouncing the case as arbitrary and warning it threatens crucial aid work in disaster-prone areas.

Jasmin “Minet” Jerusalem, 65, head of the Leyte Center for Development Incorporated (LCDE), faced the Regional Trial Court Branch 45 in Tacloban City after being charged with three counts of financing terrorism by the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG), which linked her to the New People’s Army (NPA).

“This is arbitrary punishment,” Jerusalem told reporters after her arraignment. “It’s painful to see in court: ‘Jasmin A. Jerusalem vs. People of the Philippines.’ I’ve never done anything wrong.”

She has led LCDE since the 1980s, providing emergency relief, food, and health services to disaster-stricken communities in Leyte and Samar. The organization has claimed to have served more than 900,000 people since its founding in 1988.

“For what – for helping poor people?” she said.

The Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC) ordered the freezing of LCDE’s operational funds as well as the personal accounts of Jerusalem, her staff, her son, and their local suppliers. The freeze, which took effect on April 30, 2024, following an AMLC directive dated April 5, has disrupted humanitarian operations, she said.

Jerusalem posted bail of P600,000 in February – P200,000 for each of the three cases – after the regional court issued an arrest warrant against her. She voluntarily appeared before a court in Navotas that month.

Despite the financial and legal strain, Jerusalem said the group would continue to defend itself and stand by its mission. 

“Our hope is to win so we can serve again,” she said.

Jerusalem is also the chairperson of the Citizens Disaster Response Network (CDRN), a coalition of community-based disaster response organizations nationwide.

HELPING HAND. Humanitarian group leader Jasmin Jerusalem gives an elderly woman food aid during an outreach program in Eastern Visayas in 2017. Jasmin Jerusalem FB page

In 2024, the Ilocos Center for Research, Empowerment, and Development (ICRED), a member of CDRN, condemned the AMLC action, calling it “a gross violation of human rights and an assault on civil liberties.”

ICRED said the accounts were frozen allegedly without substantial evidence linking Jerusalem or LCDE to terrorism under the Terrorism Financing Prevention and Suppression Act of 2012.

“This baseless designation disrupts the essential services provided by LCDE to over a million marginalized individuals,” ICRED said in a statement, adding that the case showed a “troubling trend where development, humanitarian, and environmental workers are increasingly targeted.”

Jerusalem has received several national and international honors for her humanitarian work. She was among the 2021 recipients of the United Nations Women in Disaster Risk Reduction (WIN DRR) Leadership Award for Asia Pacific. 

In 2017, CARE Germany recognized her as an International Climate Heroine. In 2015, she was awarded Most Outstanding NGO Leader by the Philippine National Volunteer Service Coordinating Agency, and in 2006, the Department of National Defense honored LCDE with a Gawad Kalasag award for disaster preparedness and response. 

The Department of Social Welfare and Development in Region VIII also named LCDE its Most Outstanding Partner in 2003.

Jerusalem’s lawyer, Alberto Hidalgo, asked for a two-month suspension of proceedings to allow them time to file a petition for review with the Supreme Court. The regional court did not grant the full request but allowed the arraignment to proceed. It set the pre-trial hearing for September 15.

Hidalgo said the timeline would provide “a good period” to file a petition and seek a temporary restraining order.

“The Supreme Court will have enough time to study the issue,” he said. – Rappler.com