Upang maiwasan ang human rights abuses
NI NOEL ABUEL
Sa layuning maiwasan ang paglabag sa karapatang pantao sa isinasagawang anti-drug operations ng Philippine National Police (PNP) at Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) ay dapat na magkaroon ng kinatawan ang Commission on Human Rights (CHR).
Ito ang ipinanukala ni House Deputy Minority Leader at Bagong Henerasyon party list Rep. Bernadette Herrera, sa inihain nitong House Bill 1011 na layong bumuo ng inter-agency task force (IATF) para makapasok ang CHR sa anti-drug campaign ng pamahalaan para maiwasan ang human rights violations.
“This aims to ensure the protection of human rights of drug suspects, as well ensuring that police officers conduct themselves in a proper manner so as not to subject themselves to situations that would have them liable for violations of human rights,” sabi ni Herrera.
“CHR agents will be tasked to properly document police activities during anti-drug operations, for the mutual protection of the accused personalities and the police officers, and to ensure that the anti-drug war adheres to the Philippines’ obligations on the protection of human rights,” dagdag nito.
Paliwanag pa ni Herrera, ang panukala nito ay bilang tugon na rin sa panawagan ng human rights groups mula sa local at international groups kaugnay ng “war on drugs” na ipinatupad ni dating Pangulong Rodrigo Duterte.
Sinabi ni Herrera na sa kasagsagan ng drug war ng administrasyong Duterte mula Hulyo hanggang Setyembre 2016, nasa 700,000 drug users at pushers ang sumuko at 3,295 namang mga drug suspects ang napatay kabilang ang 1,167 drug personalities.
Ikinalungkot ng kongresista ang bilang ng mga nasawing pinaghihinalaang drug personalitiesay resulta ng lehitimong police operations na nakakuha ng atensyon ng international community kasama na ang United Nations (UN) at iba pang bansa na nanawagan sa pamahalaan ng Pilipinas na siguruhin na walang nilalabag na karapatang pantao.
“While we welcome the expedient steps the Duterte administration took against the scourge of drugs, the issue of human rights has been a continuously raised topic. An all-too commonly heard police statement is that the drug personality fought back, forcing our police officers to defend themselves,” sabi pa ng mambabatas.
Kasabay nito, nilinaw ng beteranong mambabayas na ang panukala nito ay layon ding maprotektahan ang mga pulis na nangunguna sa paglaban sa illegal na droga.
“We also understand and commend our courageous police officials of the PNP, who are fighting a difficult ward. Least of all their worries should be any threat of prosecution for offenses of human rights during anti-drug operations,” ayon pa dito.
Sa ilalim ng nasabing panukala, ang CHR chairman ang magsisilbing chairman ng IATF habang ang PNP Director General ang magiging vice chair, at ang kalihim ng Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) at ng Department of Justice (DOJ), ng director ng National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) at ang Solicitor General ay pawang mga magiging miyembro.
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