Death Squad-Style Murders Rise in GenSan

2. 18 year old Epedilito Vallenti was shot by gunmen riding on a
motorcycle on May 12 at around 2:20 pm near his home. The victim is
said to be the leader a small of gang of teenagers.

3. 23 year old Roger Bagalangit was shot dead on April 20 in front of
his sister, Resalie. They were waiting for a ride on their way home,
when a gunman armed with a .45 caliber pistol, appeared and shot
Roger. He was hit in the back of the head and died. The police have
concentrated thus far on finding out whether the victim had a
criminal record.

4. 30 year old Jonathan Lanciso was shot on April 18, while watching
volleyball game in public, by two gunmen armed with .45 caliber
pistols, in Sitio Lanton, Barangay Apopong. Nobody has identified the
gunmen to date. Jonathan had previously been detained and then
released, having been falsely charged with the theft of a firearm.

5. 23 year old Gabriel Sintosas and 21 year old Emerson Estocado were
killed on March 19 in Purok Malok and Purok San Roque, Labangal,
respectively. Their attackers rode motorcycles. The police quickly
made public statements that the two had been killed due to suspicions
that they were involved in series of motorcycle robberies in the city.
However, they gave no proof to substantiate these claims.

6. 16 year old Rolen Daganio (a.k.a dugong bunso) was shot dead by
unidentified gunmen riding on a red XLR motorcycle on March 18,
around 9:55 pm along Barangay City Heights. Rolen is said to be a
repeat offender and had been detained by the police on several
occasions. The social welfare was supposed to be taking custody of
him when he was killed.

7. 28 year old Nasser Kamid was killed on March 7 along Amao Road,
Barangay Bula, by three attackers riding on a motorcycle, armed with
a .45 caliber pistol. The police have yet to conclude their
investigation, but have suggested that the victim had been previously
detained at the Davao Penal Colony (Dapecol). Three empty shells from
a .45 caliber pistol were recovered by the Scene of the Crime
Operatives (SOCO) team.

Prior to these killings, escalating incidents of robberies of
motorcycles in which the drivers were killed had been taking place
since late-2007. The failure by the police to investigate these has
meant that no perpetrators have been brought to justice. The growing
disappointment concerning the police’s failure may have led to
vigilante killings, which have been tacitly approved by many, which
has been aggravated by the police and mayor’s statements. As a
result, the murders of several innocent persons have now been
committed, and the authorities are doing nothing to stop them.
Regardless of whether a person is innocent, however, vigilante
killings cannot be accepted. The Philippines lauds its having got rid
of the death penalty recently, but vigilante and other extra-judicial
killings continue to undermine this apparently positive development.

The Asian Legal Resource Center (ALRC) urges the concerned government
agencies to ensure that each case of murder or extra-judicial killing
is promptly and effectively investigated upon. The local government
and the police must recant their statements that are justifying these
killings. They must, according to the provision of RA 6975, implement
and enforce all necessary measures to ensure that any form of
arbitrary deprivation of life is prevented and that those responsible
are brought to justice.

# # #

About the ALRC: The Asian Legal Resource Centre is an independent
regional non-governmental organisation holding general consultative
status with the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations. It
is the sister organisation of the Asian Human Rights Commission. The
Hong Kong-based group seeks to strengthen and encourage positive
action on legal and human rights issues at the local and national
levels throughout Asia.

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