Rodrigo Duterte

Duterte asked: Why the silence on lawyer killings?

Rambo Talabong

This is AI generated summarization, which may have errors. For context, always refer to the full article.

Duterte asked: Why the silence on lawyer killings?

SILENT. President Rodrigo Duterte presides over a Cabinet meeting in Malacañang on January 11, 2021.

Malacanang photo

President Rodrigo Duterte, the most powerful lawyer in the country, has not issued a statement on the dozens of lawyers killed and attacked under his administration

A day after another lawyer was attacked in the Philippines, President Rodrigo Duterte, a lawyer himself, is being asked by colleagues in the same profession: Where is your statement?

Duterte asked: Why the silence on lawyer killings?

Kailangan din sabihin natin nang diretso sa Presidente, abogado siya ‘di ba, sabihin natin sa kanya, ‘Okay lang ba, Mr President, na pinapatay ang mga abogado? Bakit wala pa kayong statement o hindi ‘nyo sinasabihan ‘yung inyong mga security forces ‘yung inyong law enforcement agencies na ‘wag pumatay ng abogado at may gagawin para hindi mangyayari ng pagpatay sa mga abogado?’” said lawyer Evalyn Ursua during an online briefing organized by the Integrated Bar of the Philippines on Thursday, March 4.

(We need to tell it straight to the President, he’s a lawyer, right? Let’s tell him, “Are you all right with this, Mr President, that lawyers are being killed? Why don’t you have a statement yet, or you’re not telling your security forces, your law enforcement agencies not to kill lawyers, and that something will be done so that killings of lawyers don’t happen?”)

President Rodrigo Duterte, the most powerful lawyer in the country, has not issued a statement on the dozens of lawyers killed and attacked under his administration.

Malacañang condemned the stabbing on Wednesday, but the statement was issued by Presidential Spokesman Harry Roque, not Duterte himself.

INDIGNANT. Lawyer Evalyn Ursua during the IBP-led online press briefing on Thursday, March 4.
Rappler screenshot

Ursua is a lawyer in one of the dozens of petitions before the Supreme Court against the anti-terror law. She is joined by other prominent lawyers, including former Bayan Muna congressman Neri Colmenares, opposition lawmaker Edcel Lagman, National Union of Peoples’ Lawyers president Edre Olalia, and IBP president Egon Cayosa.

The briefing was quickly organized following the assault of their fellow anti-terror law petition lawyer Angelo Karlo “AK” Guillen, who was stabbed by two masked men in the lower temple with a screwdriver on Wednesday evening, March 3 , in Iloilo City. The culprits took his backpack and sling bag, which contained his laptop and case files.

Ako, inaantay ko ang statement ng ating fellow lawyer na si Presidente kasi importante na may message mula sa presidente ng Pilipinas para tumigil na itong mga atakeng ito sa mga abogado,” Ursua added.

(For me, I am waiting for the statement of our fellow lawyer, the President, because it is important that there is a message from the president of the Philippines to stop these attacks against lawyers.)

Must Read

In alarming rise of PH lawyer killings, what is being done?

In alarming rise of PH lawyer killings, what is being done?

IBP president Egon Cayosa reported that his office has been in contact with the offices of lawmakers and the Office of the Vice President for efforts against lawyer killings.

The IBP also wrote to the President in December 2020. Duterte has not responded.

Ang hindi po sumasagot, ang ating Presidente. Wala po tayong naririnig sa kanya,” Cayosa said. (The one person who is not replying is our President. We are not hearing anything from him.)

Cayosa acknowledged that the Department of Justice set up a task force against extrajudicial killings, but he reiterated their call for the government to include IBP lawyers and lawyers working in fields that are vulnerable to killings in its investigation teams. – Rappler.com

Add a comment

Sort by

There are no comments yet. Add your comment to start the conversation.

Summarize this article with AI

How does this make you feel?

Loading
Download the Rappler App!
Clothing, Apparel, Person

author

Rambo Talabong

Rambo Talabong covers the House of Representatives and local governments for Rappler. Prior to this, he covered security and crime. He was named Jaime V. Ongpin Fellow in 2019 for his reporting on President Rodrigo Duterte’s war on drugs. In 2021, he was selected as a journalism fellow by the Fellowships at Auschwitz for the Study of Professional Ethics.