KAIROS calls for an investigation into the mass killings in Negros Oriental province, the Philippines
KAIROS shares the concerns of our partner the National Council of Churches in the Philippines (NCCP) on the killing of 14 people in Negros Oriental province, on 30 March. There is a huge discrepancy between the testimony of local witnesses who identify the men as unarmed, farmers and community leaders, and the police characterization of the men as “communist rebels” who resisted arrest. KAIROS joins with the NCCP and Amnesty International in calling on the Philippine government to hold a thorough and impartial investigation into these killings, a call echoed by the Governor of Negros Oriental. The critically important question is whether the officers who carried out these operations may have extra judicially executed the men, in violation of the non-derogable right to life protected under article 6 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), to which the Philippines has signed on.
For a the full NCCP statement see https://nccphilippines.org/2019/04/04/on-the-mass-killing-of-14-farmers-in-negros/
For Amnesty International’s statement see (https://www.amnesty.org/download/Documents/ASA3501562019ENGLISH.PDF)
