State-perpetrated killings must stop
State-perpetrated killings must stop
Illustration by Neil Doloricon
BULATLAT PERSPECTIVE
On a rainy night, 39-year-old health worker and human rights defender Zara Alvarez in Bacolod City was shot and killed.
A few days before her fatal shooting, 71-year-old Randall Echanis was stabbed to death by men who, according to witnesses, had been surveilling him for a month.
State security forces are said to be responsible for both crimes.
In the case of Echanis, the actions of the Philippine National Police (PNP) fueled suspicion that the murder was the handiwork of men in uniform. Instead of going after the perpetrators, the police seized the body from the family and issued statements contrary to witnesses’ accounts
The Palace was quick to absolve state security forces. Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque said, “Blaming state forces as the people behind these murders is unfounded as investigation on the killings of Randall Echanis and Zara Alvarez is now underway.”
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