Palace told: Address, don’t dismiss, report on killings
After Malacañang questioned Karapatan’s move in reporting the alleged political killings under the Duterte administration to the United Nations (UN), the human rights group on Saturday said that the government should instead look into documented cases which it said were supported by facts and testimonies instead of dismissing the claims.
READ: Palace: Karapatan report on killings to UN ‘questionable’
“Instead of Malacañang’s blanket dismissal of allegations that its State security forces have killed peasants and indigenous peoples, it should look into these documented cases substantiated with facts and testimonies, even first-hand witness testimonies identifying the State perpetrators of the political killings,” Karapatan said in a statement.
“It should initiate prosecution to hold them accountable and rescind the counter-insurgency program that has terrorized peasant and indigenous communities,” it added.
Last Tuesday, Karapatan said that it submitted the case files of 47 victims of extrajudicial killings in the Philippines under the Duterte government’s anti-insurgency campaign to the office of UN special rapporteur Agnes Callamard.
The human rights watchdog said that victims of the alleged extrajudicial killings carried out by state forces were peasants, indigenous peoples, Moro, workers, women, and youth.
READ: Karapatan submits records of killings under Duterte to UN
The submitted records are to be included in the May 8, 2017 third cycle of the Universal Periodic Review on the Philippines at the UN Human Rights Council.
Karapatan said that the government should address the thousands of complaints lodged at the Joint Monitoring Committee on the Comprehensive Agreement on Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law (CARHRIHL).
“Our broken justice system and domestic institutions have failed the victims and their families,” the group said.
“While it true that international institutions should not interfere with domestic affairs, any State is duty-bound to uphold international human rights commitments and therefore is accountable to its peoples according to such commitments,” it added.
It also noted that only one conviction in a local court was attained in the 1,587 victims of political killings during the administrations of Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III and the current Duterte regime. IDL
