Families of drug war killings demand justice

Record ID: 906909

  • Title: Families of drug war killings demand justice
  • Date: 18th August 2017
  • Summary: RELATIVES LOOKING ON DAUGHTER OF CASTILLO, KHERMINE JOY LOPEZ, LOOKING AT COFFIN (SOUNDBITE) (Filipino) AUNT OF KILLED DRUG DEALER WILSON CASTILLO, JULIETTA ORTEGA, SAYING: "We are all in distraught by what has happened. He was the only one that my relatives are counting on and a daughter that needs him." ORTEGA SPEAKING (SOUNDBITE) (Filipino) AUNT OF KILLED DRUG DEALER WILSON CASTILLO, JULIETTA ORTEGA, SAYING: "Mr. President, your order to kill your own people is not right. There are a lot of people dying who are innocent, who are not criminals. You are making a grave mistake." ACTIVISTS HOLDING PLACARDS VARIOUS OF ACTIVISTS HOLDING PHOTOS OF KILLED DRUG USERS ACTIVISTS HOLDING BANNER READING (English): "STOP THE KILLINGS" ACTIVISTS HOLDING VARIOUS ANTI-DRUG WAR PLACARDS PLACARD READING (English): "STOP THE KILLINGS!" MOTHER OF DRUG WAR VICTIM EMILY SORIANO SPEAKING ON MICROPHONE (SOUNDBITE) (Filipino) FAMILY OF DRUG WAR VICTIM, EMILY SORIANO, SAYING: "I am in favour of arresting people, but what you're doing is not just apprehending, but killing. How about people who do not do drugs, they are also killed. Like my son, he was not an addict. Even if you look at his records in the local village or the police. My son is clean, he is innocent."
  • Embargoed: 1st September 2017 12:07
  • Keywords: drug war Rodrigo Duterte killings funeral
  • Location: MANILA, PHILIPPINES
  • City: MANILA, PHILIPPINES
  • Country: Philippines
  • Topics: Crime/Law/Justice
  • Reuters ID: LVA0036UOO951
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: Families of drug war victims demanded justice on Friday (August 18) after three days of intensified police operations that has killed at least 80 people this week.
    Police have been initiating what it described as a "One-time, big-time" operations in the Philippine capital and surrounding provinces in its push to curb drugs and street crimes.
    Julietta Ortega, a relative of a killed drug dealers at a slum community in Manila, said her nephew Wilson Castillo was no longer into drugs, but was killed on Wednesday (August 16). She blamed President Rodrigo Duterte for instigating the police to kill drug users.
    Several family members joined the dozens of activists in protesting against the war on drugs, carrying placards and photos of those killed under police operations. Emily Soriano, mother of a 16-year-old who was killed by last year's operations, said her son was not a drug user and demanded justice for his death.
    Presidential spokesperson Ernesto Abella denied allegations that the police have been executing suspects and defended the crackdown on street-level drug users.
    Duterte has expressed his support for the escalation of the killings this week and said on Thursday (August 17) he would pardon officers who killed drug offenders, and even promote them. Critics maintain that members of the Philippine National Police (PNP) are executing suspects and say it is likely they have a hand in thousands of unsolved murders of drug users by mysterious vigilantes. The PNP and government reject that.
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
  • Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2017. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
  • Usage Terms/Restrictions: None
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