Category: Human Rights

Davao City’s ‘ghost employees’ early funders of Duterte’s EJKs

Published by Ellen on October 23, 2024

The House Quad Committee (Quadcom), which has uncovered gruesome information, in its investigation of extrajudicial killings (EJKs), is now into tracing the money trail that financed former president Rodrigo Duterte’s brutal war on drugs.

Quadcom co-chairs Reps. Bienvenido “Benny” Abante Jr. and Dan Fernandez said that the mega-panel composed of the Committees on Dangerous Drugs, Public Order and Safety, Human Rights, and Public Accounts, will seek the assistance of the Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC) in tracing the illicit transactions.

Former Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office General Manager Royina Garma, who also played a major role in Duterte’s bloody program, had given information on the rewards system which was patterned to Davao drug war template that she helped implement when she was a Station Commander in one of the police stations in Davao.

Families appeal to authorities: Return James and Felix to us

Published by Ellen on September 26, 2024

It has been over a month since James Jazmines disappeared. It will be a month on Saturday in the case of Felix Salaveria, Jr.

No one disappears in the normal scheme of things in this world. Life’s cycle consists of birth, childhood, adulthood, old age, death. Some get to complete all the stages, some are not so lucky and skip some stages. But nowhere is there a stage when one simply disappears. Unless something drastic happened to disrupt that cycle as in the case of Jazmines and Salaveria.

The families of the two point to government agents as behind the dastardly act. Karapatan secretary general Cristina Palabay said “The tell-tale signs of state involvement in the abductions of Jazmines and Salaveria are there.”

‘Ridiculous,’ SC says on drug war records as ‘national security’

Published by Ellen on June 6, 2021

Several times, President Rodrigo Duterte has proudly taken responsibility for the killings in his bloody campaign against illegal drugs. It goes without saying, therefore, that the prosecution of the drug-related killings would have to reach his level.

If he thinks that citing “national security” will save him and the top officials who implemented his war on drugs, including his first police chief, now Sen. Ronald “Bato” Dela Rosa, from being accountable for all those killings, he is wrong.

The Office of the Solicitor General (OSG) already used that line in the 2018 case of Aileen Almora, et al. Vs. Director General Ronald Dela Rosa, et al./Sr. Ma. Juanita R. Daño, et al. Vs. The Philippine National Police, et al. and the Supreme Court vehemently rejected it.
The Supreme Court’s words: “It is simply ridiculous to claim that these information and documents on police operations against drug pushers and users involve national security matter.”

Why does DOJ need PNP consent to probe cops in drug war?

Published by Ellen on May 30, 2021

Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra is very grateful and called it a “very significant milestone” because it “did not happen in previous years.”

This is no different from President Duterte thanking China for allowing Filipino fishermen to fish in the area of Scarborough Shoal, a Philippine territory. But that’s another topic that requires a separate discussion.

This so-called “very significant milestone” came after a meeting with newly installed PNP chief Gen. Guillermo Eleazar who said this is being done to dispel allegations that they are hiding facts on the killings from the public to protect the law enforcers involved in carrying out Duterte’s brutal banner program that has elicited international concern and condemnation.

No one is biting the bait, especially the families of the victims and their lawyers.

Guevarra’s speech reveals concern on ICC probe of Duterte

Published by Ellen on March 7, 2021

Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra (inset) addressed the U.N.Human Rights Council.

Despite President Rodrigo Duterte’s bravado that he is not worried about the complaints of crimes against humanity filed before the International Criminal Court (ICC) against him and officials involved in the government’s bloody drug war, the speech of Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra before the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) last Feb. 24 betrayed the administration’s concern about it.

Toward the end of Guevarra’s speech delivered online, he enumerated what the Philippine government has done on the human rights aspect of Duterte’s brutal war on drugs. He said: “The PH strongly emphasizes its legal and judicial system, its domestic accountability mechanisms are functioning as they should. We reject any attempt by any external entity to assume jurisdiction over internal matters which are being addressed more than adequately by our national institutions and authorities.”

Are they concerned that outgoing ICC chief prosecutor Fatou Bensouda’s report expected to come out before the end of her term on June 15 would recommend investigation of the more than 50 communications that her office had been examining since 2018 and from which it has found “reasonable basis to believe” that crimes against humanity were committed in Duterte’s drug war?

Two case dismissals but no release order

Published by Ellen on February 21, 2021

Senator Leila de Lima and journalist Lady Ann Salem

The case of illegal possession of firearms and explosives against journalist Lady Ann “Icy” Salem of Manila Today was dismissed last Feb. 5 but she continues to be in jail in Mandaluyong City.

A drug case against Sen. Leila De Lima was dismissed last Feb. 17. She, however, remains in detention at the Philippine National Police Custodial Center in Camp Crame, Quezon City because she still faces two other cases.

Salem’s lawyer, Kristina Conti of the Public Interest Law Center, speaking at a rally of the journalist’s supporters in front of the Mandaluyong City Regional Trial Court, said last Friday that the Feb. 5 dismissal of the case against Salem and trade unionist Rodrigo Esparago was not accompanied by a release order.

What’s the Duterte government up to with AFP’s reckless red-tagging?

Published by Ellen on January 25, 2021

Journalist Roel Landingin and lawyer Alex Padilla

Journalist Roel Landingin, one of the 28 named in the latest red-tagging offensive of the Duterte government, expressed concern over the credibility of information that the military has and uses.

“It’s concerning because it’s the type of info they use for military operations,” Landingin said in an online press conference on Saturday afternoon. “Imagine if nag-reunion tayo (we hold a reunion) and they misconstrued it as an NPA assembly and pwedeng maging subject ng military operation (it could be subjected to a military operation),” he added.

The presence of Landingin in the online presscon, along with five others in the list — lawyers Alex Padilla and Raffy Aquino, playwright Liza Magtoto, development worker Marie Lisa Dacanay, former journalist and government official Elmer Mercado — effectively debunked what was posted last Friday, Jan. 22, on the Facebook wall of the Armed Forces of the Philippines Information Exchange.

That post, which was taken down later but not after it had been widely shared, carried the heading: “Some of the UP students who became NPA (died or captured).”

The Desaparecidos; Disappeared but not forgotten

Published by Ellen on August 30, 2020

Families of desaparecidos marked the International Day of the Disappeared August 30 with deeper concern and sadness as the list has become longer in the last four years of the Duterte Administration.

Erlinda Cadapan, Desaparecidos chairperson whose daughter Sherlyn has been missing since June 26, 2006, expressed the fear that the newly signed Anti-Terrorism Act “will serve as a fertile ground for increased cases of enforced disappearance.”

“We fear that Duterte’s terror law will enable State forces to resort to extraordinary measures such as abductions and enforced disappearances like what they did to my daughter to instill fear on its critics and activists as the government spins out of control because of the pandemic and the ailing economy,” Cadapan said during a virtual forum organized by Karapatan, an alliance for the advancement of people’s rights.

Coalition of lawyers, journalists, human rights defenders calls Anti-terror Act ‘repugnant’

Published by Ellen on August 8, 2020

CenterLaw’s Gilbert Andres files petition vs ATL

The disclosure of the new Armed Forces Chief of Staff, Lt Gen Gilbert Gapay, about his plan to include the use of social media in the implementation of the Anti-Terror Act (ATA) is a grave warning on the danger of this law.

“Because this is the platform now being used by the terrorists to radicalize, to recruit, and even plan terrorist acts. That’s why we need to have to specific provisions of this in the IRR pertaining to regulating the use of social media,” Gapay was quoted in news reports as having said in a media briefing.

Gapay had to issue a clarification later that what he meant was to “put order on the social media platforms, not the users per se,” when his plan elicited statements of concern from officials, one of them was the author of the ATA himself, Senator Panfilo Lacson.

Filipina human rights worker, one of the 15 recipients of the Franco-German Human Rights Award

Published by Ellen on December 17, 2019

Human Rights advocate Aileen Bacalso accepts the 2019 Franco-German Prize for Human Rights award from French Ambassador Nicolas Galey (left) and German Ambassador Anke Reiffenstuel (right).

It could not have been given to a more deserving person.

Last Dec. 12, two days after the universal observance of International Human Rights Day, human rights advocates gathered at the Novotel in Quezon City to applaud the awarding to Aileen Bacalso, the Franco-German Ministerial Prize for Human Rights and the Rule of Law.

Bacalso was one of the 15 in the world who were honored this year for the work they are doing in protecting human rights. The others were: Ales Bialiatski (Belarus), Li Wenzu (China), the Nadim Center (Egypt), Ameha Mekonnen Asfaw (Ethiopia), Robin Chaurasiya (India), Nasrin Sotoudeh (Iran), Amina Hanga (Nigeria), Miluska Del Carmen Luzquinos Tafur (Peru), Irina Biryukova (Russia), Delphine Kemneloum Djiraïbe (Chad), Asena Günal (Turkey), Luz Mely Reyes (Venezuela), and Vu Quoc Ngu (Vietnam).

The countries where the other recipients come from is a commentary on the notorious company that the Philippines keeps, despite the fact that the preamble in its Constitution speak of building “a just and humane society.”