EVERYBODY SHOULD speak out loud and clear against the wave of summary killings and the rampant violation of basic rights by roving bands who do it for a variety of reasons, some noble, some not.
It is not so much the rights of the dead victims who can tell no more tales (unless via an autopsy done in a credible scientific manner). It is our rights, too. We cannot look the other way—or wait till it hits us.
It’s not only that one single, big mistake, misstep or accident in any of those “operations” is irreparable; it’s that it will totally negate whatever good intention or objective we have against this “drug cancer” that affects us all.
The tears and fears for the rights of obscure hovel dwellers should not be less than those for top generals. Let us go very hard on them equally if we must, but we must do the right thing for the right reasons at the right time in the right way.
—EPHRAIM CORTEZ, assistant secretary general for legal services, JOSALEE DEINLA, assistant secretary general for education, National Union of Peoples’ Lawyers, nupl2007@gmail.com