MANILA – The Philippine National Police (PNP) insisted it follows a set of operational procedures found on the principles of respect for human rights when conducting drug operations.
PNP chief General Oscar Albayalde made the remark on Monday following the call of United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) experts to probe the government’s controversial antidrug campaign.
“With utmost respect for human rights, the PNP upholds the rule of law, follows strict protocols in all of its anti-illegal drugs operations, and will never tolerate any wrongdoing of its personnel,” Albayalde said.
“Those found to have violated standard police rules and procedures were charged either administratively or criminally, or both, and were slapped with either administrative sanctions or dismissal from the service,” he added.
Albayalde said the UN rapporteurs concept of “unlawful deaths” was a recognition of the “existence of a fully- functional justice system that determines what is lawful and what is not.”
“Homicide cases with all sorts of motives cannot be categorized under the war on drugs. All deaths during anti-drug police operations have been properly investigated,” he said.
Independent experts urged the UNHRC to launch an independent probe into “a sharp deterioration in human rights across the Philippines” due to the “staggering number of violent and unlawful killings of drug suspects.”
That call did not sit well with the Palace as they deemed the move as an “outrageous interference” to Philippine sovereignty. /PN
