SENATE Majority Leader Vicente Sotto III on Monday, August 14, took a swipe at United Nations Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial killings Agnes Callamard and two other UN executives for criticizing the drug war and human rights situation in the Philippines.
The Philippine senator described Callamard and UN special rapporteurs Michel Forst and Maud de Boer-Buquicchio as mere “helicopter experts” who offer solutions to problems of a country that “they are not even familiar with.”
Forst is the UN’s special rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders, while de Boer-Buquicchio handles the sale and sexual exploitation of children.
In a privilege speech, Sotto asked: “Is it possible to arrive in a country you are not familiar with, and in a couple of days, speak about the decades-old problems of that country like you had all the wisdom in the world? And even expect to be welcomed hospitably by your hosts?”
The senator also refuted Callamard’s claim that “there is no evidence Shabu leads to violence or causes brain damage” by citing killings committed by drug abusers.
“Just six months ago, particularly in February of this year, a 4-month-old baby was raped by a known junkie in their neighborhood in Carcar City, Cebu. The baby was found bloodied and naked 30 meters from her home. There were lacerations, blood and grass particles found in the private area of the victim. Who, in his normal state of mind, can do such a thing to a baby who is defenseless, weak and fragile?” the senator said.
He continued, “More recently, specifically last May 2017, a policeman, who was charged with two counts of parricide by shooting his wife and son 38 times and even stabbed his son in the heart ‘because he wouldn’t die’, tested positive for drugs and admitted that he had sniffed ‘shabu’ days before the brutal killings.”
Callamard has been a vocal critic of Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte’s drug war and of the alleged thousands of summary executions and human rights abuses linked to his anti-narcotics campaign.
Last May, Callamard visited the country to attend a drug policy forum in Manila.
Sotto said he initially wanted to discuss the issue with Callamard during her visit but “time and circumstances conspired to dampen (his) interest to speak.”
“I thought the passage of two and a half months would make my interest fade away and die, but I was mistaken. Just last August 2, another provocation emanated from the same source, and if I continue to be silent, I may be remiss in my duties,” he said.
Callamard, Forst, and de Boer-Buquicchio recently called on the Philippine government to address growing reports of human rights violations in the country.
In a joint statement, they said many groups in society, including children, are becoming victims of “severe, multiple human rights violations.”
“We are shocked by the increasing levels of violence, killings, intimidation and harassment being suffered by human rights defenders — including those protecting indigenous peoples — trade union organizers, farmers and their family members,” they added.
