MANILA, Philippines – Facing Rodrigo Duterte for the first time on Wednesday, November 13, families of drug war victims shared how his vaunted campaign not only robbed them of their loved ones but also of their dignity.
“Sa totoo lang, ‘yung war on drugs, lubos kaming nawalan ng dignidad. Inalisan kami ng dignidad,” Mary Ann Domingo, whose husband and son were killed in Duterte’s drug war in 2016, told the House of Representatives’ quad committee on Wednesday, November 13, attended by Duterte for the first time.
“Kaya narito po kami na sana po mabigyan ng hustisya kaming mga biktima,” she added.
(The truth is, because of the war on drugs, we lost our dignity. We were stripped of our dignity. That’s why we’re here, hoping that we, victims, will attain justice.)
According to reports, as many as 20 cops stormed Domingo’s residence in Caloocan City on September 15, 2016. The cops pointed their guns at Luis Bonifacio, her common-law partner, when they saw him. Domingo’s son, Gabriel, refused to leave his father’s side. Domingo said she and her three other children “were eventually dragged down the stairs and outside” and later heard gunshots.
She waited eight years before she secured the homicide conviction of the cops involved in the killing, making the case the only fourth known conviction in the drug war. It is also possibly the last drug war-related conviction, according to Domingo’s lawyers from the National Union of Peoples’ Lawyers.
Wednesday’s quad committee hearing paved the way for some drug war victims to be in the same room as Duterte, the man behind the anti-drug campaign that killed around 30,000 people, according to several human rights groups. The families have been attending the House hearings for months, but it was Duterte’s first appearance in the House inquiry.
“Siyempre natatakot po kami, pero ngayon po ay kaharap na namin si [dating] presidente Duterte at sana po ay hinihiling namin na talagang lumabas po ang buong katotohanan para po magkaroon na ng katarungan ang lahat po ng mga pinaslang, hindi lang po ang aking anak,” said Llore Pasco, who lost two sons in the drug war.
(We are afraid, of course, but now we’re face-to-face with former president Duterte and we hope and we ask that the whole truth will come out so that there will be justice for everyone who was killed, not only for for my sons.)
‘It’s painful every day’
Khristine Pascual lost her son, Joshua Laxamana, to Duterte’s drug war. Cops killed then 17-year-old Joshua, a gaming champion, in another supposed case of “nanlaban” or suspects allegedly fighting back in Rosales, Pangasinan. On Wednesday, Pascual finally had the chance to tell Duterte how his drug war caused them pain every single day.
“Mahirap pa rin po sa kalooban namin. Ang mahirap lang doon kasi, ‘yung mahirap ka na tapos may pinagdadaanan ka pa po na ganito na hindi basta-basta…. Kumbaga araw-araw, puro sakit ng loob, dasal, kung ano ba ‘yong pinaglalaban naming ito (It’s still hard for us to deal with. What’s difficult is we’re already poor and we have to go through an extraordinary situation…. It’s like every day, we always feel pain, we pray for whatever we are fighting for),” Pascual said.
Pascual also used her allotted time during the hearing to air their sentiments about the reward system in Duterte’s drug war.
“At lalo rin [pong] nasaktan ang kalooban [namin] noong nalaman namin na may reward. Parang ganoon lang po, napaglaruan ‘yung mga buhay ng mga mahal namin sa buhay. Kaya kay biro man po o hindi ang nasabi niya pong batas niya, hindi rin po maganda sa kamukha naming mahihirap,” the drug war victim added.
(We were hurt even more when we found out that there was a reward [system]. Just like that, the lives of our loved ones had been tyoed with. So whether Duterte’s policy was a joke or not, it was destructive for poor people like us.)
Retired police officer and former “drug war poster boy” Jovie Espenido confirmed in an affidavit submitted to the quad committee the existence of a reward system in Duterte’s drug war. Later, retired police colonel Royina Garma, a cop close to Duterte, submitted two affidavits narrating how Duterte started the drug war, the reward system, and Duterte’s alleged Davao Death Squad.
Another retired cop, former National Police Commission commissioner Edilberto Leonardo, later confirmed Garma’s affidavit. – Rappler.com