6 US congressmen urge PHL gov't to release De Lima immediately

Six US lawmakers called on the Philippine government to immediately release Senator Leila de Lima from detention to allow her to fufill her duties as a senator.

In House Resolution (HR 233) filed on Thursday, the lawmakers condemned "the Government of the Philippines for its continued detention of Senator Leila de Lima, calling for her immediate release, and for other purposes.”

“The House of Representatives condemns the Government of the Philippines for its role in state-sanctioned extrajudicial killings by police and other armed individuals as part of the ‘War on Drugs,’” the resolution said, according to a press release from De Lima's camp.

HR 233 also condemns “the arrest and detention of human rights defenders and political leaders who exercise their rights to freedom of expression, and the continued detention of Senator Leila de Lima.”

The resolution was introduced by California Representative Jackie Speier. 

It was co-sponsored by Massachusetts Representative James P. McGovern, Georgia Representative Henry C. Johnson, Maryland Representative Jamie Raskin, California Representative Brad Sherman, and Texas Representative Lloyd Doggett.

HR 233 was referred to the House Foreign Affairs Committee.

The lawmakers called De Lima a "prisoner of conscience" as she was detained for her political views and exercise of freedom of expression.

De Lima has been detained for the past two years for allegedly being involved in the proliferation of the illegal drug trade inside the New Bilibid Prison. —KG, GMA News