Yet again, Robredo hits spate of killings

VICE President Leni Robredo on Wednesday issued yet another strong statement condemning the spate of extrajudicial killings that has been reported in recent weeks.

“These senseless and unjust violence must stop. We should not foster a culture of fear in our society—one that tacitly accepts death and one that does not give respect to human life,” Robredo said.

The Vice President repeated her call for authorities to “seriously investigate these killings and bring those responsible to justice.”

“The rise in extrajudicial killings is a call for all of us to uphold every person’s right to due process. Each of those Filipinos who were killed over alleged crimes were denied their right to a fair trial, and those lives may never be returned to their loved ones,” she said.

“We must all stand together in defending our human rights, as well as the rights of those who cannot fight for themselves,” she added.

Last week, Robredo warned that anyone could become a victim in the ongoing vigilante-style killings of suspected drug addicts or drug pushers.

“It is scary that it could be anyone of us, anyone in our families … anyone in our communities can be victims,” Robredo had said.

As of July 18, according to the Inquirer’s own tally, 265 people had been killed since June 30, when Mr. Duterte was inaugurated into office; 312 had been killed since May 10, a day after he was elected President.

On Monday night, Ateneo high school Math teacher Emmanuel “Em-J” Pavia was shot dead by unidentified men while he was on his way home.

Police are still investigating the killing but initially said that it could be related to Pavia’s anti-illegal drugs advocacy. Pavia was 24.