A report released by human rights group Karapatan on July 19 debunked claims by the current administration that human rights violations in 2023 were halved compared to 2022.
“Contrary to [President Ferdinand] Marcos Jr.’s declaration, there were significant increases in the most serious human rights and international humanitarian law violations such as extrajudicial killings and enforced disappearances,” the group said in its January-June 2024 issue of Monitor.
The group reported at least 60 extrajudicial killings in 2023, an increase from 41 in 2022, under the counter-insurgency program of the Marcos Jr. administration.
Karapatan lamented the 11 cases of enforced disappearances in 2023, describing it as the ‘biggest hike’ compared to four victims in 2022.
The group also noted a 66 percent rise in victims of indiscriminate firing, increasing from 12,263 in 2022 to 20,391 in 2023.
The number of victims from bombing attacks by the Armed Forces of the Philippines also surged dramatically, from 2,354 in 2022 to 20,391 in 2023, marking a 766 percent increase.
Additionally, reported cases of fake surrenders rose from 153 in 2022 to 401 in 2023, an increase of 162 percent, according to the group.
“These figures, as well as the subsistence realities of the marginalized sectors, are enough to dispel Marcos Jr.’s false claims that ‘things are looking better’ on the human rights front,” the group said.
Karapatan said that what sets Marcos Jr. apart from his predecessor, Rodrigo Duterte, is his effort to cultivate a more “presidential” image, in contrast to Duterte’s crassness.
Out of the 105 victims of extrajudicial killings from July 2022 to June 2024, 72 were farmers.
Peasant group Tanggol Magsasaka claimed most of the victims were killed by the military in what it called an “obvious fake encounters” with the communist-led New People’s Army.
“The modus and pattern of killings are similar — the victims were accosted alive from their residence or farm. They were brutally killed and then accused and redtagged as NPA members killed in an encounter,” the group said.
The group emphasized that the extrajudicial killing victims under the present administration are more than just statistics or body counts in the state’s terror attacks against its people.
“The victims, primarily farmers seeking genuine land reform, were parents, siblings, friends, and fellow Filipinos, leaving behind children and relatives seeking justice for their loss,” it said.
Karapatan reported that over 3.4 million individuals experienced state-sponsored harassment, with the majority subjected to threats, harassment, and intimidation, primarily through red-tagging. This category represents the largest number of human rights violations under the Marcos Jr. administration.
According to Karapatan, activists are profiled, subjected to surveillance, and pressured to disassociate from their organizations and inform on their colleagues.
The group also claimed that victims are forced to participate in staged surrender ceremonies designed to enhance the perceived successes of the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict.
“Those who refuse or relocate residences to evade persecution are often vulnerable to threats of more serious human rights violations,” said Karapatan.
