Palace: Government to probe deaths of 9 activists

MANILA, Philippines — The government will probe the killing of nine activists in Southern Tagalog, Malacañang said yesterday as it defended President Duterte’s order for security forces to kill armed rebels.

Presidential spokesman Harry Roque said under international law, civilians should not be targeted by forces involved in the conflict. He noted that the state has the obligation to investigate and prosecute crimes like murder.

“I am very sure that (the killings) would be investigated and if there are people who committed wrongdoing, they would be prosecuted and punished,” Roque said in a press briefing.

“With regard to the nine who were killed, we will investigate... when they were killed, they were unarmed,” he added.

Roque said the probe would determine if there is necessity and proportionality in the killing of the activists.

“If there is none, that is the crime of murder,” he said as he defended Duterte’s recent directive to shoot armed insurgents, saying it is legal.

He said under the International Humanitarian Law, a person who has a weapon and who is involved in a war can kill and can be killed.

Legitimate

The Philippine National Police (PNP) yesterday insisted that the simultaneous police operations in Calabarzon (Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal and Quezon) that left nine persons dead were legitimate. The PNP issued the statement after progressive groups described the incidents on Sunday as a “murderous rampage” against activists.

PNP chief Gen. Debold Sinas said it was impossible for the 24 operations to be illegitimate as the courts issued warrants against the suspects.

“Those were legitimate operations because those were covered with search warrants. If you know how hard it is to secure the warrants, you will understand. You have to justify the charges,” Sinas told journalists.

Calabarzon police director Brig. Gen. Felipe Natividad reiterated Sinas’ claim that the operations were legitimate.

Natividad said the subjects of the search warrants were identified based on intelligence reports and research including their alleged link with the communist group.

Disappointed

Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra admitted that he was disappointed with the way the PNP conducted the operations, noting the deaths of the activists.

Guevarra said he was hoping that after he submitted his report to the United Nations Human Rights Council last month, the PNP would be more cautious in carrying out its operations.

“I do not want to prejudge our law enforcement agencies if they had to do what they needed to do. We do not know the exact circumstances, but nonetheless if someone dies, we have to do something about it,” Guevarra said.

He said he would look into the incidents and would take the matter up with the task force on extra-judicial killings to determine if an investigation should be conducted on the Calabarzon incidents.

One of the task force’s member-agencies is the National Bureau of Investigation.

Guevarra expressed doubt that President Duterte’s recent “shoot-to-kill” remark against alleged communist rebels triggered the PNP operations.

Fatalities identified

Police identified the fatalities as Calec Buds Bacasno, Melvin Dagsinao, Abner Esto, Edward Esto, Puroy dela Cruz and Randy dela Cruz,.

Earlier, rights groups identified three fatalities as Emmanuel Asuncion, alias Manny Asuncion, and couple Ariel and Ana Mariz Evangelista.

Police said Asuncion, tagged as a Bayan leader, resisted arrest and opened fire at the officers who served a search warrant in his office in Barangay Salitran 1, Dasmariñas, Cavite. – Neil Jayson Servallos, Evelyn Macairan, Rhodina Villanueva, Ed Amoroso