MANILA – This Black Saturday, a procession reenacting the Stations of the Cross remembered the children and families who became victims of the extrajudicial killings of former president Rodrigo Duterte’s so-called “drug war.”
Gathering at the University of the Philippines Diliman, members of the Children’s Rehabilitation Center (CRC) expressed their collective grief and indignation through narratives, symbolic representations, and moments of reflection.
“With at least 150 children and 30,000 individuals estimated to have been killed, this event asserts that these were not collateral damage, they were lives deliberately and unjustly taken,” CRC said in a statement.
The procession was named “Sila Kian atbp: Pasyon Patungong Hustisya,” an attribution to the 17-year-old Kian delos Santos who was killed by three police officers in Caloocan in August 2017. His case was one of the few which resulted in a trial and conviction, but many other victims continue to suffer from injustice. In worst cases, the proliferation of targeted disinformation towards the victims makes them suffer another layer of injustice.
“The arrest of former President Rodrigo Duterte for crimes against humanity marks a turning point. But it is only the beginning. Justice must not stop at symbolism, it must materialize in policy reform, prosecution of all perpetrators, and tangible support for the victims and their families,” CRC added.
The group is part of the consortium who crafted the Children’s Electoral Agenda, which was introduced at a press conference at the Commission on Human Rights last April 2. During the launch, justice was sought for orphaned children of Duterte’s brutal policy, stating that there has been no concrete program for the victims.
“The arrest of Duterte shows the courage of the families victimized by war on drugs, and the human rights defenders who brave the threat, harassment, and vilification — they never wavered in searching for justice,” said Pamela Camaco, deputy executive director of Children’s Legal Rights and Development Center (CLDC) during the launch.
Camacho cited data from the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), which recorded at least 18,000 children orphaned by the rampant killings under the anti-illegal drugs campaign.
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Duterte’s “war on drugs” has harmful consequences on children, as underscored in the report of Human Rights Watch (HRW) in 2020, regardless if they directly witnessed the killing of their parents during the violent raids or not.
“Many suffer psychological distress after witnessing the killing of a loved one. Some children have had to leave their homes and community, either going into hiding or relocating because they and their family members feared for their lives,” the report stated.
Some of the severe impacts include bullying, stigmatization, and deepening poverty. The HRW report added, “The killing of a parent or guardian typically has significant financial consequences for those left behind, especially because most victims have been from impoverished communities, and were often the family’s main or sole breadwinner.”
Truth-telling, reparation, and systemic change have been the main demands of the children who participated in the procession, calling on the current administration to immediately end the brutal drug war policies that continue to endanger the lives of the poor.
There have been more than 950 drug-related killings during the administration of Ferdinand Marcos Jr., as documented by the Dahas project of the University of the Philippines.
CRC ended, “No child should ever become a martyr to failed and violent policies. Justice must come full circle!” (RTS, RVO)
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