Rights group: Korean’s slay shows law breakdown

MANILA, Philippines - The alleged killing of a South Korean businessman by policemen is an indication of a breakdown in the rule of law under President Duterte, international rights advocates said yesterday.

Human Rights Watch (HRW) cited the government investigation released this week that concluded police officers who allegedly killed Jee Ick-joo were operatives of the Philippine National Police-Anti-Illegal Drugs Group.

“The officers had kidnapped Jee on Oct. 18, 2016, after raiding his home in Angeles City using a fake arrest warrant that falsely implicated him in illegal drug activities. They reportedly strangled Jee to death that same day, but two weeks later demanded – and received – a $100,000 ransom from his family,” HRW said.

“Jee’s killing is notably grotesque even amidst a ‘war on drugs’ that has killed thousands, including children as young as five, in the past six months. Since Duterte took office on June 30, his anti-drug campaign has claimed the lives of more than 6,000 people. They include 2,250 ‘suspected drug personalities’ killed by police between July 1, 2016, and Jan. 17, 2017,” Phelim Kine, deputy director at HRW’s Asia Division, pointed out.

HRW said the police have attributed those killings to suspects who “resisted arrest and shot at police officers,” but have not provided evidence that the lawmen acted in self-defense.

An additional 3,603 alleged drug users and dealers have been killed by “unidentified gunmen” between July 1 and Jan. 9. The PNP has classified them as “deaths under investigation.”

HRW said Jee’s extrajudicial execution bolsters allegations that “death squads,” composed of police personnel operating in civilian clothes, are committing some and perhaps many of those killings.

“Philippine police have good reason to believe that they can literally get away with murder. Duterte has pledged effective immunity for police who kill in the name of his drug war. He underscored his own personal contempt for human rights and rule of law on Dec. 12 when he publicly announced that he had personally killed suspected drug users and dealers while mayor of Davao City,” Kine said.

“Yet our previous research in the Philippines shows that those given a license to kill with impunity will eventually start doing so for personal profit,” he added.

“Duterte’s ‘war on drugs’ has widened the gateway for similar abuses. Until the Philippine government stops the drug war killings and seeks meaningful accountability for its thousands of victims, Jee Ick-joo’s murder may portend a flood of for-profit killings by cops,” Kine said.

For its part, the PNP took exception to the statements of HRW, saying they were without basis.

“The statement of the group is sweeping and without basis,” PNP spokesman Senior Supt. Dionardo Carlos said.

Carlos said Jee’s killing allegedly by a member of the police force should not be used to say there is a breakdown of the rule of law under the Duterte administration. – With Emmanuel Tupas