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Death-squad cases, by the numbers

GMA’s order for the authorities to solve 10 political killings in 10 weeks is mere play with numbers. That is because at the current rate of death-squad hits (about three per week according to Karapatan), many more victims will die in the next 10 weeks, which will offset the 10 solved cases (if they are indeed solved).

Consider the figures. As of today, 717 have fallen as victims of political killings since GMA took power in 2001; 121 were killed in 2006 alone. They include at least 47 journalists, 15 lawyers, and 10 judges. Most were unarmed civilians, and a significant number are women. (A national daily keeps its own count at 294 killings.)

On the other hand, the PNP’s Task Force Usig, set up to investigate the killings, has a much smaller count: it considers only 102 leftists and journalists killed since 2001. Yet, of this trimmed-down number, only 26 cases have been filed in the courts; 76 are still under investigation.

Now GMA has further lowered the target down to 10 cases in 10 weeks. But even before they get going, the assigned agencies have already made excuses for their expected failures. Executive Secretary Ermita, Justice Secretary Gonzalez, and the PNP spokesman all said basically that they would “do their best”, but would be “hampered by many factors” such as “the attitude of lawyers” and the “lack of witnesses.”

Even assuming that 10 cases are solved soon, that does not bring 10 dead people back to life. At best, like in the recent case of a murdered photojournalist in Manila, it will only show that AFP and PNP personnel are involved in the killings.

What Palparan said in a magazine interview should send a chill through everyone’s spine: “(The killings are) being attributed to me, but I did not kill them. I just inspired (the triggermen).” He added with a chuckle: “We are not admitting responsibility here, what I’m saying is that these are necessary incidents.”

Obviously, these same words thrilled the utterly insensitive GMA to praise him in her latest SONA, and inspire more triggermen to kill more victims in the days ahead?

The Left is not alone to blame these killings on the GMA regime. Amnesty International, the Dutch Lawyers for Lawyers Foundation, the Asian Human Rights Commission, even the government’s own Commission on Human Rights, are all holding the GMA government responsible and accountable for the “culture of impunity” that encourages these killings. The wider international community, even the US State Department, has also taken notice and called for urgent action.

Let us thus stop this madness that now terrorizes the entire nation, before it consumes us all.

The public must call on GMA to immediately order her military and police to prevent or stop the killings, now that it has become stark clear that high-level AFP and PNP planners know a lot more about this terrible bloody rampage than what they are willing to admit. Commanders where the killings are most rampant should be investigated and put under preventive suspension. It is also necessary to set up of an independent commission to investigate these extrajudicial killings.

Finally, we reiterate the need to junk the “all-out war” policy against the opposition, and resume peace talks with the CPP-NPA-NDF and sincerely seek a more peaceful solution to the social, political and economic ills that now wrack our society. #

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