Makabayan bloc slams killing of activist in Bacolod

MANILA, Philippines — Members of the Makabayan bloc in the House of Representatives condemned on Saturday the killing of a Negros island-based activist, which happened a week after peasant leader Randall “Randy” Echanis was slain in Quezon City.

Bloc members said the death of Zara Alvarez, the former education director and a paralegal staffer of rights group Karapatan, showed that people from progressive groups who were previously tagged as terrorists had become part of a “hit list of sorts.”

Last Monday, it was Echanis, a peace consultant of the National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP), who was found dead in his rented home in Novaliches, Quezon City.

“We have just buried Randy Echanis who was brutally killed. Now the fascists have killed another activist.  The nonstop attacks against critics and those opposed to the current administration are intensifying,” Bayan Muna Rep. Carlos Zarate said.

“Zara, like Ka Randy, was among the more than 600 people that the DOJ wanted to tag as terrorists in a proscription case it earlier filed February 2018.  This list has been trimmed down to only two after it was heavily denounced. But it seems that the said list has become a hit list of sorts,” he said.

Earlier on Saturday, Karapatan Secretary-General Cristina Palabay confirmed the death of Alvarez, who was apparently gunned down in Barangay Mandalagan of Bacolod City.

Some officers of the Bacolod City Police Office meanwhile confirmed to INQUIRER.net that a shooting occurred in the said barangay and that the victim was identified as a certain Zara.

The Gabriela party-list, on the other hand, highlighted that the killing of activists continued despite the problems caused by COVID-19 afflicting the country.

“We are in deep grief and rage as another political activist joins the long list of those murdered under the Duterte regime even as we continue to face the COVID-19 pandemic,” the group said.

Meanwhile, the Kabataan party-list callED on the government to ensure the Alvarez family would receive justice. The group noted that Alvarez also used to be Kabataan’s coordinator on Negros island.

“We extend our deepest condolences to her family and fellow rights’ workers. We vow to exact accountability and bring the perpetrators to justice! This murderous rampage against human rights’ defenders and peacebuilders must stop,” Kabataan said.

“The merciless killings, human rights violations, and the worsening climate of impunity under the Duterte administration must end,” it added.

Last Monday, after Echanis was found dead, police speculated that suspects’ motive might have been robbery or a personal grudge. However, various activist organizations believe that Echanis was killed by state agents in his rented home in Quezon City.

Police officers have asked people to refrain from making assumptions without enough evidence.

[atm]