Cañete: Human rights violations less among Negros Oriental cops

CEBU, Philippines — The Commission on Human Rights in Negros Oriental declared: “Our police in the province is not that bad compared to other areas in the country.”

CHR-Negros Oriental special field investigator Jess Cañete issued the statement during last week’s regular session of the Dumaguete City Council, where he was called to report on the agency’s performance.

For this year, the CHR said it had investigated a total of 18 cases: Three for abuse of authority committed by barangay officials, two for alleged planting of evidence during police drug raids, three for child abuse, and the rest for enforcement of the hospital anti-detention law.

Of the same period, Cañete the CHR recorded only two alleged cases of extrajudicial killings or EJK, but this happened in remote towns of the province.

Cañete told the City Council that human rights violations in Dumaguete and the province is very minimal because the police is well versed on the provisions of the law, but he admitted that violations against women and children are somewhat high among barangays in the city.

The CHR official stated that the agency has contributed to the reduction of human rights cases in the province because it regularly conducts lectures to police personnel in the province on the value and respect for human rights.

It would be unfair to imply that the police is responsible for the EJKs, unlike in previous years when a lot of complaints were filed against the military and the police, he said. (FREEMAN)