Bodies of killed activists in ‘Bloody Sunday’ still held at funeral home

MANILA, Philippines — Relatives of urban poor activists killed in the March 7 “Bloody Sunday” raids are struggling to claim the bodies of their departed loved ones.

Melvin Dasigao, Mark Lee Corros Bacasno as well as Dumagat farmers Puroy and Randy Dela Cruz were among the nine killed during the government’s simultaneous enforcement of search warrants against suspected members of the communist movement.

According to advocacy group Karapatan, the families of Dasigao, Bacasno, and Dela Cruz together with their legal counsels from the National Union of Peoples’ Lawyers  (NUPL) arrived at the Antipolo Memorial Homes on March 10 to process the release of the four individuals’ remains.

“Despite being able to process the necessary papers and payments for release, the funeral house along with police officials have refused to release the remains and threatened to arrest the families, the paralegals, and the people assisting them when they asserted their right to claim the bodies,” Karapatan Secretary General Cristina Palabay said.

WATCH: Atty. Kathy Panguban and 5 members of paralegal team are being prevented from entering the Antipolo Funeral Homes this morning. 📹 Video from Karapatan | @T2TupasINQ pic.twitter.com/2go3RKeVAZ

— Inquirer (@inquirerdotnet) March 11, 2021

Atty. Kathy Panguban of NUPL and five paralegals were not allowed to go inside the funeral home on Thursday morning.

Although the relatives of the four have been allowed to go out of the funeral home before noon, they were still not allowed to take the remains of their relatives.

As of this writing, Panguban said relatives have yet to claim the bodies of the four.

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