Karapatan: Probe nothing but Duterte rants and hubris-laden testimony

MANILA, Philippines — Former President Rodrigo Duterte only used the Senate subcommittee probe into the previous administration’s drug war as a platform for his “expletive-laced rants” and his testimony taking legal responsibility for the effects of his anti-drug campaign is part of his “hubris-laden testimony,” according to a human rights watchdog.

Karapatan Secretary General Cristina Palabay made the statement on Monday as the group expressed “solidarity with the thousands of victims of extrajudicial killings and their families who are seeking justice and accountability from the murderous Duterte regime.”

READ: Palace refutes Duterte’s claim that crime remains rampant in PH

“The proceedings have become a three-ring circus […] Nothing new here – just the usual Duterte who curses through his answers when he squirms his way out of responsibility,” Palabay said.

“It is looking more and more that the purpose of the Senate hearings is to defuse the ticking bomb in the House of Representatives which, if allowed to reach their logical conclusion, would end up blowing up in the face of the Marcos Jr. regime,” she added.

Karapatan explained how extrajudicial killings (EJK) served as a “weapon” to quell “mass resistance and spread terror.”

Citing its data, the group pointed out that the former chief executive should be held accountable for the EJKs of 30,000 individuals involved with drugs, the alleged summary execution of 422 political activists, and the reported frustrated extrajudicial killing of 544 others.

Aside from the purported killings during Duterte’s time, Karapatan also pointed out the alleged crimes during other administrations including the current one.

“Duterte’s successor, the dictator’s scion Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has not done away with this hit list/bounty system, and killings continue to mount under his term. He has 105 cases of extrajudicial killings and 75 frustrated EJKs to his name in his first two years in power,” the group claimed

“We must exact accountability not only for the horrific drug war killings under Duterte. We must attain justice for all the other horrendous extrajudicial killings perpetrated in the Philippines in furtherance of tyranny,” it added.

Earlier, however, the Palace refuted former Duterte’s claim that crime remains rampant in the Philippines.

“With due respect to former President Rodrigo Duterte, there is no truth to his statement that crime remains rampant in the country,” Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin said in a statement.

“Statistics from the Philippine National Police shows the complete opposite. There has been a widespread decline in crime across the board,” he added.