The nation is on vigil for justice and accountability under the Duterte administration
Sept 21,2021
It is the mourning and the wailing following the inhumanity of Herod written in Matthew that plays in our minds vividly as we survey Duterte’s carnage: many mothers crying and keeping watch over their slain loved ones; mothers in unbearable pain as they cuddle the body of a son killed in the war on drugs; and, mothers and spouses lamenting over their offspring or spouse gunned down in the street whether activist, human rights worker, or peoples’ lawyer in a lawless manner. Voices resound throughout the land demanding justice for the killings of loved ones, indigenous peoples and farmers, development workers, church workers and rights defenders, including the death of a newly born infant of a mother under detention. This violence to life continues to this day.
This grand swell is evident after years of state terror, torture and killing under the insidious “war on drugs,” the Anti-Terror Law and the NTF-ELCAC program. Instead of promoting peace these have bred pain and resentful hearts, orphans and widows. The militarized approach to the pandemic and the corruption now being exposed more than ever have rendered the general population vulnerable twice over. Do we wonder why people are rising not only in protest over state-sanctioned killings but also against the perfidy of government response to a grave medical concern like the pandemic?
President Duterte has failed the citizenry. He will not be able to escape responsibility and accountability. There, too is the ground swell of the “One Voice” for peace and justice. Even the international community has taken notice and joined the demand for accountability and the prosecution.
As we mark Marcos’ declaration of Martial rule and the tyranny and plunder that characterized it, we join the clamor for “Never Again!” and the call for learning the lessons of the past.
The vigil for peace and justice must continue. No more to a despot!
#StopTheKillings #ProsecuteDuterte
Signed :
Most Rev. Broderick S. Pabillo, D.D,. Apostolic Vicar of Taytay, Palawan
Most Rev. Gerardo Alminaza, D.D. , Bishop, Diocese of San Carlos
Bishop Reuel Norman Marigza, Secretary General, National Council of Churches in the Philippines
Most Revd. Rhee M. Timbang, Obispo Maximo, Iglesia Filipina Independiente
The Rt. Rev. Rex Resurreccion B. Reyes, Jr.,The Episcopal Diocese of Central Philippines (EDCP)
Bp. Emergencio Padillo, United Church of Christ in the Philippines (UCCP)
Br. Armin A. Luistro, FSC, Brother Visitor, Lasallian East Asia District
Sr. Rowena Pineda, MMS, Chairperson, Sisters Association of Mindanao (SAMIN)
Sr. Ma. Lisa Ruedas, DC, Justice Peace and Integrity of Creation
