Cardinal Tagle urges end to drug trade, killings

Manila Archbishop Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle. FILE PHOTO

The head of the Philippines’ powerful Catholic Church called for an end to the manufacture and selling of illegal drugs, as well as the “waste of human lives,” following a brutal week in President Rodrigo Duterte’s drug war in which a 17-year-old boy was among dozens killed.

Police raids dubbed as “one-time bigtime” saw at least 76 people shot dead, authorities said, as rights groups and lawmakers condemned the operation as an alarming “killing spree” in Duterte’s flagship campaign.

On Sunday, the highest-ranking Church official in the predominantly Catholic nation expressed concern about the increase in the number of deaths.

“We knock on the consciences of those manufacturing and selling illegal drugs to stop this activity,” Manila Cardinal Luis Tagle said in a statement read in Sunday Masses in the capital.

He added, “We knock on the consciences of those who kill even the helpless, especially those who cover their faces with bonnets, to stop wasting human lives.”

“The illegal drug problem should not be reduced to a political or criminal issue. It is a humanitarian concern that affects all of us.”

Duterte, 72, launched an unprecedented crackdown on illegal narcotics after winning the presidency last year on a promise to kill tens of thousands of criminals.

The Church, one of the nation’s oldest and most powerful institutions, had been among the few voices denouncing the deaths as polls showed Duterte continued to enjoy widespread popularity.

During the 14 months Duterte has been in power, police have confirmed killing more than 3,500 people — insisting they acted in self-defense.

More than 2,000 other people have been killed in drug-related crimes and thousands more murdered in unexplained circumstances, according to police data.

The numbers saw a sudden increase this week, with Duterte praising officers who shot dead 32 people in adjoining Bulacan province as he urged for more.

Following Duterte’s call, at least 51 people were killed in various cities including a 17-year-old boy whose death on Thursday sparked a national furor.

Relatives of Kian Delos Santos released CCTV footage of the boy being dragged away by two officers as they questioned a police report that he shot at them first.

The police have presented a drug suspect who claimed that Delos Santos had been a drug runner.

The suspect, whom police said was arrested on Aug. 17, claimed that the boy was a conduit for him and a drug pusher named “Neneng.”

In Sunday’s statement, Tagle called for nine days of prayer for people who have died in the drug war.

“Those with sorrowful hearts and awakened consciences may come to your pastors to tell your stories and we will document them for the wider society,” he said.

Duterte had launched a broadside against priests and bishops in response to the Church campaign to stop the killings. CBB