AKBAYAN Senator Risa Hontiveros expressed hope there would be no more extrajudicial killings as majority of Filipinos see it as a real problem that must be immediately addressed by the government.
“I hope this is the last time we will debate the existence of EJKs. No more EJK denials,” said Hontiveros, noting the people wanted it be based on human rights and rule of law.
She said the people prefer a humane and rules-based campaign against illegal drugs.”
She said this could be gleaned from the latest Social Weather Station survey showing that eight out of 10 Filipinos expressed worry about the unresolved cases of extrajudicial killings in the country, while 71 percent of Filipinos said it was “very important” that drug suspects be kept alive when caught.
“The writing on the wall is clear. The government cannot spin the result of this survey any other way while there is apparent strong public support to the government’s campaign against illegal drugs,” she said.
Hontiveros said the survey was a proof of the existence of thousands of unresolved EJKs.
The neophyte senator described the government’s war on drugs as “cruel and medieval.”
She reiterated her challenge to the Duterte government to provide a health and human rights approach to the country’s drug problem.
She said building a mega-drug rehabilitation center does not exactly match the heath needs of the drug users, arguing what the majority of the drug users need are out-patient medical assistance.
“The Department of Health already said what the majority of the drug users need are out-patient health care interventions. As such, what is needed are out-patient rehabilitation programs, community drop-in centers, and harm reduction capacity-building sessions for local governments, health agencies and non-government organizations,” Hontiveros said.
“These are based on the principles of ‘harm reduction’ to reduce the adverse health, social and economic consequences of the use of illegal drugs,” Hontiveros added.
It is time for the government to acknowledge that the drug problem is a public health issue, and a strictly punitive and violent war on drugs has failed in many parts of the world,” Hontiveros said.