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Willard Cheng

ABS-CBN News

MANILA — Officials during the Duterte administration admitted there were human rights violations in the conduct of the drug war of the previous government.Then Justice Secretary and current Solicitor General Menardo Guevarra said as much during the hearing of the House Human Rights Committee, while reiterating that the administration investigated cases of human rights violations through mechanisms such as those provided under Administrative Order No. 35, issued in 2012, that created the inter-agency committee on extra-legal killings, enforced disappearances, torture and other grace violations to the rights to life, liberty, and security of persons.The committee’s mandate, according to the DOJ website, is “to serve as the government’s institutional machinery dedicated to the resolution of unsolved cases of political violence in the form of extra-legal killings (ELK), enforced disappearances (ED), torture and other grave violations of the right to life, liberty and security of persons.”Guevarra added that allegations of violation should be studied case-to-case, saying that not all incidents where there were deaths should mean that was a violation of human rights.“Palagay ko po wala naman tayong disagreement na meron po talagang mga insidente ng human rights violations, hindi lamang po doon sa drug war, marami pa pong ibang insidente na kami po ay nag imbestiga through the mechanism called Administrative Order No. 35 ng mga extrajudicial killings; torture, enforced disappearance, and other serious violations of the right to life, liberty and security. Yan naman po ay admitted. It’s just too bad na ang due process for everyone will have to be observed,” Guevarra said in response to the question of committee chair Rep. Bienvenido Abante if he believes that there were indeed human rights violations in the drug war during the time of President Duterte.“Kung ang katanungan nyo po ay is it a fact kung merong human rights violation na may kinalaman sa war on drugs, I think ang sagot ko po dyan ay mayroon. At yan po ay kailangan lamang natin i-establish by means of competent evidence. Case to case basis po. Hindi naman po lahat ng may namatay sa police operation ay masasabi na may violation ng human rights. This is subject to the defenses din po ng mga law enforcement agents concerned,” Guevarra added.Asked with the same question by Abante, former PNP Chief Oscar Albayalde said there were violations of human rights not only during the time of Duterte. “Yes, even in the past. Hindi lang po noong panahaon ni dating Presidente Duterte. Even in the past there were alleged human rights violations,” Albayalde said.Abante said: “But there were more human rights violations during the time of the former president because of the war on drugs.”Albayalde responded, “Kailangan po ma establish yan, Mr. Chairman. Tama po yan, it’s because during the time ni President Duterte, it’s only during his time na nag concentrate po talaga siya sa anti illegal drugs.”Abante maintained “it has already been established” that there were human rights violations in the conduct of the drug war hence the conduct of the House committee hearing to look into the cases of deaths.“We have the committee hearing right now not to establish that there are human rights violations but we have in Congress this committee hearing because it has already been established that there are human rights violations,” Abante said.Abante also said that the committee is not out to pass judgment on anyone but to ensure that due process is not disregaded.“We are for the elimination of drugs in this country. What we are not for is the human rights violations that are here. Hindi kami papayag na mawala po ang due process,” Abante said.Abante blew his top when former PDEA chief Wilkins Villanueva said “there’s no human rights violation as far as PDEA is concerned” leading to Villanueva apologizing and saying he misunderstood the question.“There’s no human rights violation as far as PDEA is concerned,” Villanueva had said.  “Out of PDEA, Mr. Chair, meron, pero sa PDEA walang human rights (violation).”Abante replied, “Nakakainis yung sagot nyo kanina, naniniwala pala kayo ngayon eh. Parang iniinsulto nyo ang committee na ito eh.”Villanueva later said when asked again if there were human rights violations during the Duterte drug war, “I correct myself. There is human rights violation… I apologize Mr Chair. I correct myself.”Another hearing of the human rights committee will be scheduled.

Officials of the former Duterte administration admitted there were human rights violations in the conduct of the drug war of the previous government.

Officials of the former Duterte administration admitted there were human rights violations in the conduct of the drug war of the previous government.

Duterte admin officials admit human rights violations in drug war

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Duterte admin officials admit human rights violations in drug war

Willard Cheng,

ABS-CBN News

Published May 21, 2024 09:54 PM PHT

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House of Representatives

Duterte administration

Rodrigo Duterte

war on drugs

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