A lawmaker on Monday called on the House of Representatives to investigate the rising number of killings in the Duterte administration's campaign against illegal drugs. In a statement, Dinagat Islands Representative Kaka Bag-ao urged her colleagues to act upon House Resolution 242, which directs the Committee on Justice to conduct an inquiry in aid of legislation on the steep upsurge in the extra-legal killings and arbitrary or summary executions in the country. The resolution, authored by Bag-ao, Camarines Sur Representative Gabriel Bordado and Akbayan party-list Representative Tom Villarin, was filed on August 17, 2016, yet has not been scheduled for hearings. "Now, the numbers have risen. More people?including children like Althea Barbon (4 years old), Danica May Garcia and Francis Mañosca (5 years old), San Niño Batucan (7 years old), and many others?have been killed," Bag-ao said. "I once again call on my colleagues in Congress to investigate these cases and hold the perpetrators accountable. We must stop the killings and reclaim our humanity. Huwag muling payagang umiral ang dilim," she added. Last week, at least 80 individuals were killed in a series of anti-drug operations in Metro Manila and Bulacan. Among them was 17-year-old Kian Loyd Delos Santos, who was shot dead in an Oplan Galugad operation in Caloocan City last Wednesday night. "The murder of 17-year-old Kian Loyd delos Santos is only the latest?we have at least 31 Filipinos aged 18 years and younger who are now dead because of police operations or vigilante-style killings. They are not collateral damage?they are victims, as well," Bag-ao said. "This war on drugs, as we have already seen before, is a war against the poor, against those who do not have access to justice, and against our youth," she added. In their resolution, the lawmakers noted the increase of the extrajudicial killings in the country, which, at the time of filing, was already a "cause for alarm." "The sudden and continuing surge in cases of extrajudicial executions is a cause for alarm, as security forces and vigilantes alike have been seemingly incited to take matters into their own hands with a blatant disregard for due process, the rule of law and one's right to life, killing those who are merely suspected to having committed a crime," the resolution read. "Actions must be taken now, to seek accountability from the perpetrators of these human rights violations and to end the violence and abuse of power that is slowly creeping its way into establishing do-it-yourself justice as a societal norm," it added. On Thursday, the Senate Committee on Public Order and Dangerous will investigate the death of Delos Santos. Fourteen members of the 17-member Senate majority bloc on Sunday likewise signed a resolution condemning the killing of Delos Santos as well as the ?recent spate of abuses resulting in excessive and unnecessary deaths in the conduct of the campaign against illegal drugs.? ? BM, GMA News
08-26-2017, 10:41 PM
Bag-ao renews call to probe spate of drug-related killings
A lawmaker on Monday called on the House of Representatives to investigate the rising number of killings in the Duterte administration's campaign against illegal drugs. In a statement, Dinagat Islands Representative Kaka Bag-ao urged her colleagues to act upon House Resolution 242, which directs the Committee on Justice to conduct an inquiry in aid of legislation on the steep upsurge in the extra-legal killings and arbitrary or summary executions in the country. The resolution, authored by Bag-ao, Camarines Sur Representative Gabriel Bordado and Akbayan party-list Representative Tom Villarin, was filed on August 17, 2016, yet has not been scheduled for hearings. "Now, the numbers have risen. More people?including children like Althea Barbon (4 years old), Danica May Garcia and Francis Mañosca (5 years old), San Niño Batucan (7 years old), and many others?have been killed," Bag-ao said. "I once again call on my colleagues in Congress to investigate these cases and hold the perpetrators accountable. We must stop the killings and reclaim our humanity. Huwag muling payagang umiral ang dilim," she added. Last week, at least 80 individuals were killed in a series of anti-drug operations in Metro Manila and Bulacan. Among them was 17-year-old Kian Loyd Delos Santos, who was shot dead in an Oplan Galugad operation in Caloocan City last Wednesday night. "The murder of 17-year-old Kian Loyd delos Santos is only the latest?we have at least 31 Filipinos aged 18 years and younger who are now dead because of police operations or vigilante-style killings. They are not collateral damage?they are victims, as well," Bag-ao said. "This war on drugs, as we have already seen before, is a war against the poor, against those who do not have access to justice, and against our youth," she added. In their resolution, the lawmakers noted the increase of the extrajudicial killings in the country, which, at the time of filing, was already a "cause for alarm." "The sudden and continuing surge in cases of extrajudicial executions is a cause for alarm, as security forces and vigilantes alike have been seemingly incited to take matters into their own hands with a blatant disregard for due process, the rule of law and one's right to life, killing those who are merely suspected to having committed a crime," the resolution read. "Actions must be taken now, to seek accountability from the perpetrators of these human rights violations and to end the violence and abuse of power that is slowly creeping its way into establishing do-it-yourself justice as a societal norm," it added. On Thursday, the Senate Committee on Public Order and Dangerous will investigate the death of Delos Santos. Fourteen members of the 17-member Senate majority bloc on Sunday likewise signed a resolution condemning the killing of Delos Santos as well as the ?recent spate of abuses resulting in excessive and unnecessary deaths in the conduct of the campaign against illegal drugs.? ? BM, GMA News
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