Marcos victims awarded US$40m

MANILA – More than 9 000 human rights victims of the Ferdinand Marcos regime in the Philippines said have won US$40 million in compensation from a US court, their lawyers said yesterday.

Judge Manuel Real of the Hawaii district court ruled that a Panamanian corporation which has assets deposited in a Merrill Lynch account in New York was a sham used to hide the late dictator’s assets, lawyers Robert Swift and Rod Domingo said in a joint statement issued here. However Manila, which has insisted that Philippine government claims on so-called Marcos billions took precedence over the claims of private individuals, said it would launch an appeal against Monday’s ruling.”We will file an appeal, no doubt about that,” said Ruben Carranza, head of the Presidential Commission on Good Government, the government agency leading the global hunt for illegally acquired Marcos assets.- Nampa-AFPHowever Manila, which has insisted that Philippine government claims on so-called Marcos billions took precedence over the claims of private individuals, said it would launch an appeal against Monday’s ruling.”We will file an appeal, no doubt about that,” said Ruben Carranza, head of the Presidential Commission on Good Government, the government agency leading the global hunt for illegally acquired Marcos assets.- Nampa-AFP