BY FR. SHAY CULLEN
THE FILIPINO people and especially the Christian churches have to take a truthful examination of conscience when faced with the shocking truth that at least 30,000 Filipinos were victims of summary execution and more suffered harsh imprisonment without due process when the rule of law was ignored during the Duterte administration.
It was not unknown, it was announced by the candidate before the election of 2016. “I will kill them all,” he announced, and people went wild with cheering, giving full assent to the possible program of extermination of drug suspects. Christian values were nowhere to be seen.
These days, the extent of that murderous rampage is coming to light. Some may dispute the figures of 30,000 or more killed, but the presidential archive for the months from July 1, 2016 to Nov. 27, 2017, a period of only 17 months, shows as many as 20,322 drug suspects were shot, stabbed and killed.
This official government document presented to the House Committee on Human Rights by human rights lawyer Chel Diokno shows that the death toll was much higher than government estimates of 12,000 deaths.
“But there is one number that is unassailable because this comes from the Office of the President and was cited in an extended resolution of the Supreme Court, and that number is 20,322 persons killed in the war on drugs,” he said.
“This is found in the 2017 year-end accomplishment report of the Office of the President and cited in the resolution of the Supreme Court of April 3, 2018,” he said.
Diokno added that of the 20,322, “3,967 Filipinos were killed by police in police operations,” according to the OP report, while 16,355 were “killed by riding in tandem and other unknown persons.” The Manila Times reported this last June 6, 2024.
How could it happen in a Catholic Country, as writers like to call the Philippines, where the dignity and sanctity of human life is supposed to be held at the pinnacle of moral values? A right to life for all to be protected and fought for come what may. Yet there was but a feeble response from the institutional Catholic church hierarchy and other Christian churches. The Christian churches in general remained silent.
There was no national outrage as the bodies piled up and “death squads” went around shooting and killing with impunity and continued with state-sanctioned support and encouragement. There were no massive church-inspired and led processions of protest for justice and peace and human life. There was no blocking the streets and highways like the EDSA uprising, challenging the evil of government-supported death squads and mass killings.
The Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines in January 2019 asked forgiveness of the people for failing to speak out and they apologized for their silence and failure to stand for life and oppose attacks against the Church.
There were the brave few Filipino Catholic priests, Albert Alejo, Robert Reyes and Flavie Villanueva and many others, five courageous bishops, and lay people that risked imprisonment and even death when they spoke out for life. They were isolated and alone. (To be continued)/PN
