MANILA, Philippines – Human Rights Watch (HRW), an international human rights watchdog, urged the Philippine government to withdraw the sedition complaint filed against Vice President Leni Robredo and 35 others over their alleged involvement to the “Ang Totoong Narcolist” videos.
“Philippine authorities should drop cases for inciting sedition and other offenses against opposition politicians, religious leaders, and human rights advocates,” HRW said in a statement on Wednesday.
This was after the Philippine National Police – Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (PNP-CIDG) filed sedition and other complaints against Robredo, lawyers, opposition members and other personalities over their alleged link to the six-part video series which tagged the family and allies of President Duterte to the illegal drugs trade.
READ: Sedition case filed vs Robredo, 35 others over ‘Bikoy’ videos
HRW Asia Director Brad Adams said the complaint was an attempt to harass and silence the critics of President Rodrigo Duterte’s anti-drug campaign.
“The preposterous complaint against the vice president and the others is a transparent attempt to harass and silence critics of President Duterte’s bloody ‘drug war,’” Adams said in a statement.
“Threatening criminal charges against the vice president, outspoken bishops, and rights lawyers suggest that Duterte’s egregious human rights record is catching up with him,” he added. /gsg
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