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Manila: The mother of a Filipina who was allegedly raped by a US serviceman in Japan's Okinawa last February has accused Manila's foreign affairs department of not extending support.
"I need justice for my daughter Hazel," the mother, identified as Mom Nellie, said in a TV interview. "She will remain in Japan to pursue the case," she added. Manila's foreign affairs department did not follow up the case against the US soldier who was charged for the alleged rape, said Nellie who sought the assistance of left leaning women's rights group, Gabriela, to air her reaction.
On May 16, a Japanese court dropped the case for lack of evidence.
In response, Crescente Relacion, executive director of the Foreign Affairs Office of Migrant Workers Affairs, said the Philippine government "has not slept on the case".
Lawyers hired by the Philippine government submitted documents to the US military for the start of court martial proceedings, said Relacion.
A 20-something US serviceman invited Hazel, a cultural dancer, to dinner in a hotel at around 2 am of February 18. When she woke up, she was bleeding, reports said. The incident occurred two days after her arrival in Okinawa.
Meanwhile, Gabriela urged President Gloria Arroyo to ask US President George W. Bush for an apology. She will embark on a ten-day visit to Washington DC and New York on the last week of June.
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