Davao City First District Rep. Paolo “Pulong” Duterte. MindaNews file photo
DAVAO CITY (MindaNews / 23 May) – Davao City First District Rep. Paolo “Pulong” Duterte sought on Wednesday a legislative inquiry into the alleged extrajudicial killings (EJKs) and human rights violations in different local governments in the Philippines for the last 25 years.
Duterte is the eldest son of former President Rodrigo Duterte, who ordered an all-out war campaign against illegal drugs that resulted to thousands of deaths of suspected drug dealers and users during his term from June 2016 to June 2022. The International Criminal Court (ICC) has launched an investigation into the alleged massive drug-related EJKs during the Duterte administration, including when he was still mayor of Davao City.
Vice President Sara Duterte, the former President’s daughter, is also reportedly among those investigated by the ICC on its probe on the bloody war against illegal drugs. Sara had denied her connection to what is known as the Davao Death Squad, which allegedly carried out the drug-related EJKs in Davao City after she took over as mayor from her father in 2010.
In the three-page House Resolution No. 1745, Paolo Duterte asked the appropriate committees in the Lower House to conduct an investigation, in aid of legislation, into local government units with cases of extrajudicial killings as human rights violations remain a “perennial threat” to the Filipino people.
Specifically, Duterte sought an inquiry involving the cities of Manila, Quezon and Cebu, which, according to him, are among the local governments known to have high cases of EJKs and violations of human rights.
Duterte’s resolution directed the Commission on Human Rights, Department of Interior and Local Government, Department of Justice, and the Philippine National Police (PNP) to take part in the investigation.
The proposed investigation also seeks to include all those “who are identified to have been involved or has an alleged history of cases of extrajudicial killings and possible human rights violations in their respective areas of responsibilities for a period covering the last 25 years until present.”
In a statement, Duterte called on his fellow lawmakers to see the “whole picture” of human rights violations in the country, and not just single out Davao City and the six-year presidency of his father.
“Let us not be selective as it shall not solve the real issue here,” he said.
Citing reports from Human Rights Watch, the resolution noted that the human rights situation remains appalling “across varying political regimes as shown by the unabated and progressing rate of the said killings, including attacks against political activities and journalists and abuses committed during the armed conflict with the current 54-year-old communist insurgency.”
It added that the US Department of State noted no significant changes in 2023 while Amnesty International reported that the alleged drug-related extrajudicial executions continued to peak during the term of incumbent President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.
It also said the “Dahas” project of the UP (University of the Philippines) Third World Studies Center monitored 342 drug-related killings from July 1, 2022 to June 30, 2023, during Marcos Jr.’s first year in office, or a total of 536 from the start of his term until the end of February 2024.
Dahas means violence.
Government records say over 6,000 were killed in anti-drug operations from June 2016 until May 31, 2022, but human rights groups estimate that the death toll may be as high as 30,000. (Antonio L. Colina IV / MindaNews)
