Post by EXO on May 12, 2009 7:58:53 GMT 8
Japanese caught with 100 bodies
Claims remains those of Imperial Army soldiers
By Jeannette Andrade
Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 00:26:00 05/12/2009
MANILA, Philippines—The Manila Police District went through the equivalent of a crash course in cultural heritage preservation after several of its men intercepted the alleged skeletal remains of at least 100 members of the Japanese Imperial Army at a checkpoint only recently.
Chief Superintendent Rodolfo Magtibay, MPD officer in charge, yesterday said that it was only after they arrested Kazuya Tomita, a 41-year-old Japanese, that he and his men learned that transporting bones excavated from a dig site requires a permit from the National Museum.
“The National Museum administration informed us that [removing artifacts unearthed from an excavation site] is against the law,” Magtibay told the Inquirer.
Based on a police report, Kazuya, who was driving a Mitsubishi Pajero (CSN 102), was stopped by policemen manning a checkpoint at the corner of Padre Burgos Street and Finance Drive in Ermita at around 3:30 a.m. on April 25.
When asked what he was carrying, Kazuya told the policemen, who were led by Senior Inspector Rey Cocson of the District Mobile Patrol Unit (DMPU), that he was carrying the bones of his ancestors, with each set of remains wrapped in a piece of white cloth.
He later told DMPU head, Supt. Rizaldy Yap, that he was a member of a non-government organization involved in the recovery of Japanese soldiers’ bodies. He also said that he was taking the bones back to Japan.
The police then asked him if he had a permit for transporting the bones but Kazuya could only present a driver’s license.
“He could not show us even a sanitation permit from the Mindoro provincial government and the bones he was carrying smelled bad so we brought him in for investigation,” Yap told the Inquirer, adding that Kazuya did not say which province of Mindoro the bones came from.
Chief Insp. Rico Beltic of the MPD Pre-charge Investigation Unit (PCIU) said that Kazuya holds a tourist visa although he has been in the country for nearly 15 years.
He added that the National Museum was aware of the NGO mentioned by the Japanese although the museum administration said they were not informed by the NGO of Kazuya’s activities.
“The National Museum usually sends a representative to supervise the excavations involving the recovery of cultural relics, particularly remains of Japanese soldiers,” Beltic said.
In the meantime, Magtibay said they were keeping the bones as evidence.
Kazuya was recently turned over to the custody of the second secretary of the Japanese consul after charges of violations of Presidential Decree 374 or the Cultural Properties Preservation and Protection Act and Presidential Decree 856 or the Code of Sanitation were filed against him at the city prosecutor’s office.
Claims remains those of Imperial Army soldiers
By Jeannette Andrade
Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 00:26:00 05/12/2009
MANILA, Philippines—The Manila Police District went through the equivalent of a crash course in cultural heritage preservation after several of its men intercepted the alleged skeletal remains of at least 100 members of the Japanese Imperial Army at a checkpoint only recently.
Chief Superintendent Rodolfo Magtibay, MPD officer in charge, yesterday said that it was only after they arrested Kazuya Tomita, a 41-year-old Japanese, that he and his men learned that transporting bones excavated from a dig site requires a permit from the National Museum.
“The National Museum administration informed us that [removing artifacts unearthed from an excavation site] is against the law,” Magtibay told the Inquirer.
Based on a police report, Kazuya, who was driving a Mitsubishi Pajero (CSN 102), was stopped by policemen manning a checkpoint at the corner of Padre Burgos Street and Finance Drive in Ermita at around 3:30 a.m. on April 25.
When asked what he was carrying, Kazuya told the policemen, who were led by Senior Inspector Rey Cocson of the District Mobile Patrol Unit (DMPU), that he was carrying the bones of his ancestors, with each set of remains wrapped in a piece of white cloth.
He later told DMPU head, Supt. Rizaldy Yap, that he was a member of a non-government organization involved in the recovery of Japanese soldiers’ bodies. He also said that he was taking the bones back to Japan.
The police then asked him if he had a permit for transporting the bones but Kazuya could only present a driver’s license.
“He could not show us even a sanitation permit from the Mindoro provincial government and the bones he was carrying smelled bad so we brought him in for investigation,” Yap told the Inquirer, adding that Kazuya did not say which province of Mindoro the bones came from.
Chief Insp. Rico Beltic of the MPD Pre-charge Investigation Unit (PCIU) said that Kazuya holds a tourist visa although he has been in the country for nearly 15 years.
He added that the National Museum was aware of the NGO mentioned by the Japanese although the museum administration said they were not informed by the NGO of Kazuya’s activities.
“The National Museum usually sends a representative to supervise the excavations involving the recovery of cultural relics, particularly remains of Japanese soldiers,” Beltic said.
In the meantime, Magtibay said they were keeping the bones as evidence.
Kazuya was recently turned over to the custody of the second secretary of the Japanese consul after charges of violations of Presidential Decree 374 or the Cultural Properties Preservation and Protection Act and Presidential Decree 856 or the Code of Sanitation were filed against him at the city prosecutor’s office.