The long overdue hearing by the House of Representatives’ “Quadcom” revealed powerful evidences of corruption, heinous crimes and human rights violations linked to POGOs, international syndicates, and the war on drugs particularly during the past Duterte administration. Shocking revelations coming from personalities directly involved in these crimes have surfaced, finally shedding light on the truth.
The “QuadComm” hearings have been criticized as a demolition job against the former strongman because many of its members have been largely silent, even complacent, during the bloody Duterte rule, and now they are at the forefront of these investigations. Recent allegations of undue influence against witnesses by the investigators have surfaced, forcing some committee members to disengage from the process. It is unfortunate that the longer these hearings continue, more dirty tricks are bound to be perpetrated by the guilty parties which diminishes the credibility of the process as well as the key aspects of the systematic nature by which the policy was enacted.
It is therefore crucial at this point that concerned government agencies, in particular the Department of Justice begin to work on its own investigation and prosecution as a means to exact real accountability against those involved. The hearings aimed to make adjustments to, or enact new laws applicable to future crimes. But these truths should not end only with the hearings but must lead to a decisive legal action for accountability, prosecution of all perpetrators and justice for the victims of the war on drugs. Beyond investigating drug war killings, the national anti-drug policy must be completely reformed.
We will be closely monitoring the new task force created by the DOJ via Department Order (DO) 778 given its mandate of "probing, conducting case building and filing charges with respect to the EJKs during the Duterte administration’s anti-illegal drug campaign". For instance, can this task force prioritize the prosecution of cases where children were killed? Can the DOJ take decisive steps to provide reparation for the victims’ families? Most importantly, amidst these events, victims’ families who continue to risk retribution for participating in the investigations must be guaranteed protection.
For IDEFEND, these Legislative hearings are a good start but still just one of many steps to exact accountability and finally attain justice for the countless victims of gross human rights violations under the deadly Duterte anti-drug campaign. ###