The United States Congress has halted the release of $2 million in military aid to the Philippines as a result of the Arroyo government’s failure to address concerns on alleged human rights violations in the country, a party-list representative claimed Thursday.

Rep. Neri Javier Colmenares of Bayan Muna claimed that the information was confirmed to him by officials of the US State Department during a meeting late last month in Washington, D.C.

Appearing in Thursday’s Usaping Balita News Forum, Colmenares said the conditional $2-million military aid was not released because government continued to ignore human rights concerns aired by various international groups, including non-government organizations and churches in the United States.

“Members of the US Congress took the cue from the recommendation of the UN Special Rapporteur Philip Alston that the Philippine government must address the long-standing impunity for the killings, enforced disappearances, and other forms of human rights violations, and that extrajudicial executions and other human rights abuses do not form part of the policy of the military and the government,” he said.

Alston submitted to the UN and the Philippine government a number of recommendations to address human rights abuses committed against critics of the Arroyo government.

Also included in the findings were summary killings committed in Davao City reportedly masterminded by certain local officials.

“The release of the military aid was tied to the prosecution of human rights violators in the country, including retired General Jovito Palparan. Of course, it has always been our position that no country should give military aid to a representative government,” stated Colmenares.

According to Colmenares, the state department officials admitted that the State Department was unable to report to the US Congress that the Philippine government had met the human rights conditions required for the release of the aid.

Due to this failure, the US Lower House has approved House Resolution 3081 withholding the same military aid for the Philippines in 2010 on the basis of three conditions. The US Senate has approved the House spending bill which will form part of the US 2010 budget.

“Instead of heeding the conditions, the Philippine government merely launched high-level lobbying efforts with the US Congress, led by Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita, President Arroyo’s Special Envoy Patricia Ann Paes and the Philippine Legislative Officer Arient Penaranda,” Colmenares told reporters.

He added: “The failure of President Arroyo to investigate and prosecute Palparan defeated all their lobbying efforts.”