Rights group to PNP: Don’t use lower crime rate to justify slays

An alliance of human rights organizations has criticized the Philippine National Police (PNP) for saying that there were no extrajudicial killings in the country amid the Duterte administration’s bloody war on drugs, calling the claim an “outright lie.”

In a statement on Tuesday, Karapatan said the lower crime rate the police force was flaunting should not be used as an excuse to justify summary executions.

READ: PNP: Murder, homicide, other crimes decreased under Duterte admin

“We condemn in the strongest possible terms the recent killing of four more farmers, adding to the 42 political killings under the Duterte administration. To say that there are no extra-judicial killings in the country, whether perpetrated through counter-insurgency programs or through the war on drugs, is covering up State accountability when its official policies sanctioned the sufferings of the poor majority of the Filipino people,” said Karapatan secretary general Cristina Palabay.

“If indeed crime rates have gone down, these shouldn’t be used to justify extrajudicial killings. The PNP and the Armed Forces of the Philippines should stop giving illusory statements that everything is fine and people are living well,” Palabay added.

The PNP on Monday noted a decrease in crime rate since President Rodrigo Duterte assumed office in July. Latest crime data showed that the total number of focused crimes like murder, homicide, robbery, theft, carnapping (car theft), and physical injuries decreased to 78,941 from July 1 last year until March 25, from the 158,879 cases recorded from July 1, 2015 until the last day of former President Benigno Aquino III in office.

A recent Pulse Asia survey also showed that 82 percent of Metro Manila residents feel “safer” on the streets amid the drug war. Over 7,000 deaths have been linked to the antinarcotics campaign since Duterte became President, but the PNP said the figure was bloated.

Alluding to the controversial remark of Tourism Secretary Wanda Teo, Palabay also said that efforts of journalists to report extrajudicial killings in the country should be lauded instead of being toned down.

READ: Tourism chief urges media to tone down news on EJKs

“In fact, we enjoin journalists to report on the increasing number of political killings, illegal arrests, bombing of communities and other human rights abuses of State actors, in relation to the counter-insurgency program and all-out-war of the Duterte regime and the AFP (Armed Forces of the Philippines),” she said.

“We encourage the media to look deeper into the context of the dire lack of public housing, land, secure jobs and living wages, and transgressions on national sovereignty,” Palabay added. IDL/rga