Rights group seeks probe of killings

The New York-based Human Rights Watch (HRW) on Wednesday called for an independent inquiry into the alarming increase in police killings of suspected drug dealers and users in the Philippines, imploring President Duterte to “loudly make clear” the need to respect the rights of criminal suspects.

“The government, starting with Mr. Duterte, should loudly make clear that the police need to respect the rights and protections of all criminal suspects all the time,” said Phelim Kine, Asia deputy director of HRW.

A credible and independent inquiry into the alarming increase in police killings is urgently needed, and the findings made public,” Kine said in a statement.

Kine lamented recent remarks by government and law enforcement officials, including Philippine National Police Director General Ronald dela Rosa and Solicitor General Jose Calida, who seemed to condone the summary executions of crime suspects.

On July 11, Dela Rosa slammed calls for a Senate probe of those killings as “legal harassment,” saying it “dampens the morale” of PNP personnel, according to HRW.

‘Not enough’

For his part, Calida, on July 11, defended the legality of the killings, saying the number of such deaths was “not enough,” it added.

Established in 1978, Human Rights Watch is an international nonprofit, nongovernmental organization that conducts research and advocacy on human rights.

HRW cited the “kill list” published by the Philippine Daily Inquirer, which tallied 72 police killings from June 30 to July 7, and an additional 35 such killings over the weekend of July 9 to 10.

“Police have attributed the killings to suspects who ‘resisted arrest and shot at police officers,’ but have not provided further evidence that they acted in self-defense,” HRW said.

Mayor of Davao City for over two decades, Duterte, who won the presidential election by a landslide,  became known for his tough stance on criminals and was linked to the notorious “death squads” in his city.

Sen. Leila de Lima, a former justice secretary, has called for a Senate inquiry into the police killings.

But Sen. Panfilo Lacson, a former police chief, said on Wednesday a Senate inquiry into alleged summary executions would just be a “spectacle” and might break the “momentum” of the aggressive anti-drug campaign of the Duterte administration.

Back off

Speaking at Kapihan sa Manila Bay forum, Lacson urged his colleagues to leave investigations into possible human rights violations to the Commission on Human Rights and if needed, the Department of Justice and the National Bureau of Investigation.

“[But] If we [in the Senate] come in, we will be a spectacle, with PNP Director General Ronald dela Rosa and the crying relatives there. Let the law enforcement agencies do their thing,” Lacson said.

Lacson said he did not want the Senate to be the reason for the anti-drug campaign to lose its momentum.

But Lacson acknowledged there may be a need to look into the recent deaths of a young drug suspect, and his father, who had insisted on accompanying his son to the Pasay City police station. The wife of the young suspect claimed the two were tortured before they were killed. With a report from Christine Avendaño