Peace advocate group condemns killing of 9, arrest of 6 in Calabarzon

A peace advocate group on Thursday condemned the killing of nine people and the arrest of six others in simultaneous operations in Calabarzon, saying these were a precedent of police operations against supposed communist members.

The Ecumenical Voice for Human Rights and Peace in the Philippines (EcuVoice) denounced these as atrocious and a “treacherous assault on human rights and the rule of law.”

“This escalation of abuses is saddening. What took place on Sunday is another dangerous precedent of police operation against 'communist terrorist groups’,” EcuVoice said in a statement.

On Sunday, police authorities conducted the simultaneous implementation of search warrants against alleged communist terrorists in Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, and Rizal.

State forces said the nine individuals killed in the operations were “communist-terrorists,” a claim denied by the Bagong Alyansang Makabayan, who said they were “legal activists.”

“These dubious police operations, 'tokhang-style,' in the state's counterinsurgency operations against unarmed activists is a fatal combination that leads to more human rights violations,” EcuVoice said.

The group urged other advocates to push the United Nations Human Rights Council for an independent investigation.

“Even as we express grief and solidarity with the families and communities of the victims, we strive harder to promote and defend human rights in all platforms and work for the achievement of peace based on justice,” EcuVoice said.

“The Gospel and history will tell us that there will be a reckoning for human rights abusers and violators,” it added.

Though all their documents have been processed, the remains of four victims are still being held at an Antipolo mortuary on the orders of police.

The Philippine National Police challenged the families of the nine fatalities to file cases against the police officers amid their claims of summary execution. — Joahna Lei Casilao/BM, GMA News