LUCENA CITY, Philippines -– After spending more than two weeks in solitary confinement in Scheveningen prison in The Hague, Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) founder Jose Maria Sison vowed not to stop his work as a freedom and peace advocate.

“I will continue to exercise my freedom to speak and other democratic rights. I will continue to work for national freedom, human rights, social justice and an enduring, because just, peace in the Philippines,” Sison said in a statement he read during a press conference at a reception prepared by his friends and supporters at the National Democratic Front-International Information Office in Utrecht, The Netherlands, just a few hours after he walked out of jail.

In his speech, Sison narrated the agony of being imprisoned.

“It is extremely painful and humiliating to be subjected to solitary confinement and tough interrogation under overheated lamps. The ordeal is acute because I am innocent of the false and politically-motivated charge leveled against me,” he said.

A copy of Sison’s statement was forwarded to the Philippine Daily Inquirer, parent company of INQUIRER.net, by the European chapter of Migrante, an organization of Filipino overseas workers with chapters in different parts of the globe.

Sison said he was ecstatic after the Dutch court ordered him released Thursday.

“I am deeply pleased and thankful that the Rechtsbank has decided to release me from detention. You cannot imagine how happy I am,” said Sison.

On August 28, Sison was arrested in Utrecht by the International Crime Investigation Team of the Dutch National Criminal Investigation Department for allegedly ordering the murders of his former comrades in the Philippines, Romulo Kintanar, Arturo Tabara and Stephen Ong, as well as the attempted murders of Ruel Murakami and/or Edmundo Ruiz.

While in solitary confinement, Sison was barred from talking to media and was also denied the right to bring prescription medicines to his cell.

In his speech, Sison reiterated that he has nothing to do with all the charges against him.

“This [murder] is against my moral and political principles. I am a teacher by profession who loves the exchange of ideas towards common understanding and practical cooperation. I have long devoted myself to the advocacy of human rights and work for a just peace in the Philippines,” he argued.

Sison declined to go into the facts and arguments concerning his case, pointing instead to his lawyer Michiel Pestman.

He declared that he will continue his stay in The Netherlands with his wife and two children, who are both living independently, and conduct his legal defense to completely clear his name of all the criminal charges.

Sison is not yet off the hook as the District Court of The Hague did not preclude his being prosecuted on murder charges.

Dutch court authorities clarified that the charges against Sison are not being dropped. The investigation will continue and the national police will still consider Sison a suspect.

The Dutch court only rules on the request to keep someone in custody, while it is the public prosecutor's office that decides whether or not to prosecute.

With his release, Sison said he gained some confidence in the Dutch legal system.

“I have the opportunity to prove my innocence and continue to benefit from fair play. I feel somehow vindicated in choosing The Netherlands as my place of refuge from persecution in the Philippines. I also wish to thank the Dutch, Filipino and other peoples for their solidarity and support,” he said.

Sison said he will continue to abide by the laws of the Dutch state and further develop solidarity with the Dutch people whose friendship and kindness he has enjoyed in his more than 20 years in exile in The Netherlands.

From 1977 to 1986, Sison endured nine years of imprisonment in the country, mostly in solitary confinement, inside military jails. He also claimed being tortured by the henchmen of deposed strongman Marcos during his incarceration.