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Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider National devider Guevarra asks public: give inter-agency body a chance to review drug war deaths

Guevarra asks public: give inter-agency body a chance to review drug war deaths

Published Jul 2, 2020 03:52 pm

Department of Justice (DOJ) Secretary Menardo Guevarra on Thursday, July 2, urged the public to refrain from making any judgment and let the inter-agency panel do its work first in reviewing 5,655 anti-illegal drugs operations where deaths have occurred.

Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra (PCOO /MANILA BULLETIN)

“It will be for everyone’s good to allow this inter-agency panel to do what it has set out to do, and reserve judgment at the proper time,” he told reporters.

“This panel needs all the help that it can get, including from those who seek to discredit it much too early,” Guevarra stressed.

The secretary made the statement after the creation of the DOJ-led inter-agency panel already drew criticisms from various groups.

Among these groups, human rights organization Karapatan stated “had the Duterte government been actually sincere in holding itself accountable through domestic mechanisms, it would have already done so long ago, but the DOJ panel looks more like a deception tactic to preempt and evade any concrete investigation from international bodies such as the United Nations human rights mechanisms and the International Criminal Court than an actual avenue to exact accountability.”

Karapatan urged international human rights bodies to conduct independent probes instead on the Philippines.

During the 44th Session of the UNHRC held on Tuesday, June 30, Guevarra reported that the Philippines formed an inter-agency panel which has been conducting “a judicious review of the 5,655 anti-illegal drug operations where deaths occurred.” He said the report of its work will be presented by the end of November.

“This review mechanism will not only reinforce accountability on the drug campaign, it will tighten the web on existing mechanisms to prevent cases of impunity, including the inter-agency committee on the extralegal killings, enforced disappearances, torture and other grave violations to life, liberty and security of persons,” Guevarra told the UNHRC.

He added that the Commission on Human Rights (CHR) has been involved in the mechanism as “an independent monitoring body.”

“The Philippine National Police is obliged by its internal mechanism to conduct motu proprio investigations whether or not there are complainants on all law enforcement operations that result in deaths, and take action on this basis,” Guevarra assured.

“This panel, external to the Philippine National Police, re-evaluates these cases and examines the propriety of reinvestigating them or filing appropriate charges against erring law enforcement officers,” he added.

Guevarra said the panel also “intends to engage affected families, provide them with legal options, and assistance in criminal prosecution of law enforcers who have overstepped legal bounds in their operations.”

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