MANILA, Philippines – On the last day of Kian Loyd delos Santos’ wake, several rights groups staged protest activities around Metro Manila and abroad. Together, they demanded justice for the death of the 11th grader and a stop to Duterte’s drug war.
“Duterte’s war on drugs is a non-solution. It will only result in a rising body count but not in the end of the proliferation of illegal drugs,” the Stop the Killings Network said in a statement.
The Stop the Killings Network led the Black Friday Protest.
The August 25 protests began in Caloocan City with “Run Kian Run,” led by Father Robert Reyes. The running priest was joined by relatives, classmates, and neighbors of Delos Santos.
The protest run was followed by a mass, then a visit to the spot in the neighborhood where the teenager was killed.
Students from UP Manila, meanwhile staged a noise barrage outside the Department of Justice (DOJ) as Saldy and Lorenza delos Santos, Kian’s parents, filed murder and torture complaints against the Caloocan policemen.
The protesters also criticized DOJ Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II for his impartiality during the August 24 Senate hearing.
Before evening, members of the Stop The Killings Network offered a mass and lit candles for Delos Santos and other victims of the government’s war on drugs.
They invited people to join Kian’s funeral on Saturday, August 26.
“We call for accountability of the policemen involved in the killings as well as accountability of the Commander-in-Chief who legitimizes the killings.” said the group’s leader during a short program inside the Santa Cruz Church in Manila.
In San Beda College, student political party Ang Mithi held a vigil and candle lighting to show support for Kian’s family.
Rains brought by Tropical Storm Jolina did not dampen the spirit of protesters in Quezon City.
Members of Unchain Children expressed their sympathy to Delos Santos and the families of more than 30 children who have been arbitrarily killed in Duterte’s war against illegal drugs through a rally at the Boy Scouts Circle.
17-year-old Kian Loyd delos Santos was arrested and killed on August 16 after the Caloocan City police conducted “Oplan Galugad” in their community.
The police claimed that Delos Santos was a drug courier, and he fired upon the police first, that was why they shot him dead. A CCTV footage, neighbors’ testimonies, and autopsy and paraffin test results indicate, however, that the teenager was blindfolded, beaten up, dragged across alleys, was handed and gun by the police and told to fire it but refused.
Amid the commotion, he was heard pleading, “Tama na po, may test pa ako bukas!” He was shot from the back of his head while kneeling. He also tested negative for gunpowder. Village officials also said he wasn’t on their drug watch list.
The cops admitted in a Senate hearing this week that they only “confirmed” Delos Santos’ supposed drug links via posts on social media. – Rappler.com
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