Human rights group Defend Southern Tagalog hopes that the latest Petition for Review could be granted, “to show that the Department of Justice actually understands the meaning of justice.”
Activists assert that red-tagging or terror tagging made by government officials and other state agents endangers the lives of their colleagues, lawyers and all those who are critical of the government. Many reports have also shown that red-tagged activists were slapped with trumped-up charges, or worse get killed or disappeared.
"To indict the 16 individuals merely on the basis of unvetted or still to be clarified statements, without strong documentary or object proof, is to act on rumors. No less than the Department of Justice is expected to heed the principles of justice, truth and fairness in the conduct of its duty to the public which it has sworn to serve."
“Given Remulla’s atrocious track record of shameless apologia for red-tagging, human rights violations, and attacks on press freedom, we express grave concern over his impending appointment as DOJ secretary, especially when his appointment also means that he will get to sit as a member the Anti-Terrorism Council.”
“Why are only .8% of the 6,151 reported deaths by the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency being investigated and reviewed?”
The mañanita general's notion of despedida proved to be a series of raids and arrests in Southern Tagalog and Bicol, according to human rights groups.
Karapatan Secretary General Cristina Palabay lamented that the justice department's task force is not doing enough to resolve the extrajudicial killings in Calabarzon.
However, doubts have been raised over whether the investigating body can truly undertake an impartial investigation into the two latest EJKs and other cases. You’ll find the reasonable ground for these doubts after looking into the nature, composition and apparent inertia of the investigating body.
“Where was this ‘human compassion’ when the homeless and the urban poor were subjected to warrantless arrests, inhumane detention in dog cages, or being made to sit under the sun as punishment for simply being outside their homes for the need to earn living or for simply having no home at all?”
If there’s any consolation in this protracted resistance to injustice, it’s that I am just one among the many Filipinos who continue to believe in upholding the freedoms and rights we have won.
In the PILC motion’s prefatory statement, Ocampo said, “I am Saturnino Ocampo. Journalist. I am NOT a terrorist.”
By RONALYN V. OLEA
“We have waited this long, only to suffer another injustice. By ignoring the need for justice, they have also ignored the life of service that Leonard and his companions had done up to their last breath.” – Mrs. Glenda Co
“We know that our enemies are human rights violators who respect no one but it is important to file the case if only to show that the government is violating its own laws.” – Morong 43
By INA ALLECO R. SILVERIO Bulatlat.com MANILA -- Two progressive lawmakers and leaders of various peoples organizations said the blame over the attempts of former president Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo to leave the country should be laid at the doors of two...
By SHARMAINE ANNE B. VILLANUEVA and RONALYN V. OLEA
“We will not stop seeking for justice. We will not stop until the perpetrators are punished. I cannot settle with the fact that I can only embrace my daughter in my dreams,” Erlinda Cadapan, mother of Sherlyn, said.
Sidebar: Rights groups, Justice Secretary push for bill to criminalize enforced disappearance
Watch video of the press conference held after the filing here.
By RONALYN V. OLEA
“It is unbelievable that Aquino cannot do anything [on the case of the Morong 43],” Jose V. Cabrera, member of the board of governors of the Integrated Bar of the Philippines (IBP), said.
By RONALYN V. OLEA
“I’ll keep mentioning this case to the President…It’s just a matter of time, you can expect some action,” Justice Secretary Leila de Lima said when asked about the Morong 43 case. “It’s the case I would want to focus on after the [IRRC],” De Lima said, referring to the Incident Report and Review Committee on the Aug. 23 hostage taking incident.
BY LISA C. ITO Bulatlat.com While the Department of Justice (DOJ) seems to be hell-bent on keeping 73-year old Crispin Beltran detained at a Camp Crame hospital, doctors and psychiatrists are recommending his transfer to a hospital with adequate facilities. This,...
A community of readers and supporters that help us sustain our operations through microdonations for as low as $1.