Sue cops behind slays, Panelo tells kin of EJK victims
Presidential Legal Counsel Salvador Panelo. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO / NINO JESUS ORBETA
If they think the police were behind the death of their kin, then they should file a complaint against the erring cop, chief presidential legal counsel Salvador Panelo yesterday told families of victims in the government’s war on drugs.
The government does not tolerate police abuses, Panelo said, adding that they were “encouraging everybody to tell us who’s abusive. (I)f they have evidence against any person, kindly go to the nearest police station and inform us so that we will file the appropriate charges against those offenders.”
Murder complaints
These families no longer have reason to be scared, Panelo said, since police officers accused of killing drug suspects in their custody are now facing murder complaints. “From there, you can see that the (families) will be given protection by the government,” he added.
Panelo said that while the Commission on Human Rights and the Senate are conducting their own probes, the Palace has also ordered the police to investigate extrajudicial killings.
Drug syndicates
At the same time, Panelo maintained that drug syndicates, not the police, are behind drug-related killings, either because of double-cross or because they want to protect themselves.
Asked what made him so sure about this, the presidential legal counsel said this could be seen by the fact that the families of slain suspects were not even filing complaints.
The spate of drug killings amid the government’s antidrug campaign has drawn concern from human rights groups and international organizations, which expressed fears that the campaign has led to human rights violations and cultivated a culture of impunity. TVJ
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