CHR: Not for police to say if Ragos shooting is justified

The court, not the police, should determine whether the fatal shooting of former soldier Winston Ragos is justified, the Commission on Human Rights (CHR) said Thursday.

“We reiterate our call to allow the rule of law to prevail and let the scrutiny of the proper courts weigh in on the question if circumstances are justifiable to warrant the shooting which eventually resulted to death,” CHR spokesperson and lawyer Jacqueline de Guia said in a statement.

De Guia was referring to Ragos being shot dead by Police Master Sergeant Daniel Florendo Jr. near a checkpoint along Maligaya Drive in Barangay Pasok Putik, Quezon City on Wednesday. The neighbors in the area reportedly kept telling the policemen, including Florendo, not to engage with Florendo since the former soldier had a mental condition.

“There are different accounts of what transpired, including clashing narratives on whether the victim had a pistol in his sling bag, which the police claim as a sign of imminent danger, thus resulting in the shooting,” De Guia said.

De Guia said the enforcement of the enhanced community quarantine is there for protection of lives, not to endanger or worst, kill people.

“Strict measures, such as community lockdowns, were set during the COVID-19 pandemic to ultimately save lives. It is most alarming when these measures trigger allegations of human rights violations and, worse, result in any loss of lives,”  she said

The CHR also cited the Philippine National Police’s Operational Procedures itself  which prohibits excessive use of force and that if such force is merited, it should be a necessary and reasonable force sufficient “to overcome the resistance put up by the offender; subdue the clear and imminent danger posed by him; or to justify the force/act under the principles of self- defense, defense of relative, or defense of stranger.”

Likewise, the CHR invoked the Basic Principles on the Use of Force and Firearms by Law Enforcement Officials as adopted by the United Nations Congress on the Prevention of Crime and the Treatment of Offenders which provides that “Law enforcement officials, in carrying out their duty, shall, as far as possible, apply non-violent means before resorting to the use of force and firearms.”

“We recognize that law enforcement officials are important in the protection of life, liberty, property, and the security of person—guaranteed rights as outlined in Universal Declaration of Human Rights and in our 1987 Constitution. But there are also guidelines set on the use of force that law enforcers must strictly observe,” De Guia said.

“If the use of force and firearms is unavoidable, then authorities must practice restraint and act in proportion to the seriousness of the offense, mindful of minimizing damage and injury and with respect to the preservation of human life,” she added.

The CHR is already investigating the incident.

The police leadership has said that it is investigating the incident and that the shooter had been disarmed. Earlier, authorities said the shooting was a “judgment call” on the part of Florendo.

For its part, the Philippine Army has also started its investigation into the shooting incident.