Eleven Philippine military officers who were cleared of involvement in a coup plot against President Gloria Arroyo were freed Tuesday and will be able to rejoin their units, military officials said.
The officers, ranging in rank from colonel to first lieutenant, were freed after a court martial acquitted them last month, saying it had not found enough evidence that they were part of the conspiracy to unseat Arroyo.
They had been in military detention since February 2006.
"The 11 officers that were found to be cleared by the general court martial will finally be turned over to their respective major services as free men," said spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Romeo Brawner.
The delay in releasing the 11 was attributed to procedural requirements and the need for medical examinations after a lengthy detention.
Military chief General Victor Ibrado met with the 11 before they were freed, saying: "I would just like to see them and have some chit-chat."
The eleven were part of a group that barricaded themselves into a military camp in February 2006 in protest at the sacking of the then head of the marines, Major General Renato Miranda.
Miranda is among several defendants still on trial.
The government alleged the protest by the officers was part of a broader plot to overthrow Arroyo, who has been the target of at least three alleged coup plots by rogue soldiers during her eight years in power.
