House conducts hearing on AFP, PNP actions

MANILA, Philippines — The House committee on public order and safety yesterday pushed for stricter enforcement of enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) measures against the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic through imposition of fines on violators.

Masbate Rep. Narciso Bravo Jr., who chairs the panel, cited the need to strictly enforce the ECQ, which he said has become complicated due to varying implementation by local government units (LGUs).

“The stay-at-home policy is the hardest to implement. So we recommend fines on violators,” Bravo said during the House online hearing.

While LGUs have come up with ordinances imposing fines, Bravo said the Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) on COVID-19 should impose fines on the national level to make the measure more effective.

The panel also proposed strict implementation of curfews by LGUs and modified rules on quarantine passes.

Bravo said the rule on social distancing remains a challenge, especially in areas to be put under general community quarantine where public transportation, markets and infrastructure projects and other industries would be allowed to reopen.

“We need to institute stiffer measures to compel adherence to IATF rules. We should cite and fine persons traveling without justifiable reasons, encourage markets to manage crowds and the government must deploy more law enforcers in critical areas,” he said.

At the same hearing, Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Gen. Archie Gamboa admitted that their hands are tied in enforcing measures under the Bayanihan Act due to lack of punitive provisions of the law.

Abuses, human rights violations

The Department of the Interior and Local Government is investigating over 1,000 complaints against barangay captains for alleged violations and abuses during the ECQ, DILG spokesman Jonathan Malaya said yesterday.

Malaya said they were validating the complaints for the issuance of show cause orders against the barangay officials.

DILG Undersecretary for barangay affairs Martin Diño said among the complaints are violation of quarantine guidelines and prioritizing relatives and political allies in the distribution of cash assistance under the government’s social amelioration program.

The DILG complaint center has been swamped with complaints since the lockdown started on March 17, with an average of 30 to 60 reports a day.

Diño said they have issued show cause orders against over 50 barangay chairpersons in Metro Manila.

Rights advocates said the DILG should exercise effective oversight over its personnel, investigate all reports of abuses and hold officers committing rights violations accountable.

Phil Robertson, deputy director for Asia of Human Rights Watch, said the DILG should investigate reports of abuses by public officials and law enforcers during the ECQ.

The House committee on human rights chaired by Quezon City 4th district Rep. Bong Suntay sought a congressional inquiry into alleged human rights violations by authorities.

“We’ve been hearing many complaints. Human rights must not be disregarded during the quarantine period,” he said.

Suntay cited the killing of Winston Ragos, a mentally disturbed retired soldier, by a policeman near a checkpoint in Quezon City last week and the scuffle between a police officer and a resident of Dasmariñas Village in Makati on Sunday.

Without body cameras, the National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) asked police officers to record on smartphones any measures they would enforce in line with lockdown protocols to protect them from complaints of abuses and human rights violations.

“We encourage policemen to bring their cellphones and if push comes to shove, film scenarios for evidence, like what happened in Dasmariñas Village,” NCRPO chief Maj. Gen. Debold Sinas said, referring to a spat between a policeman and a Spanish resident of the upscale village over the failure of the foreigner’s housemaid to wear a face mask while watering plants outside their house.

The altercation was recorded on video by the Spaniard’s wife.

“Police should also take videos for evidence. So that when the complainants make up stories, we could disprove them,” Sinas said.

He said police officers would have to rely on their phones as the delivery of around 2,000 body cameras for the PNP was delayed due to travel restrictions implemented under the EQ.

‘Militarized’ response

The United Nations human rights office underscored the Philippines’ “highly militarized” response to the COVID-19 pandemic, which resulted in the arrest of 120,000 people for quarantine and curfew violations.

The Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) said disturbing details have emerged from dozens of countries that a “toxic lockdown culture” against the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted drastically on society’s most vulnerable members.

UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet said emergency powers “should not be a weapon that governments can wield to quash dissent, control the population and perpetuate their time in power.”

Georgette Gagnon, UN director of field operations, said many countries have adopted a “heavy handed” and “militarized” security response to the virus.

Under new guidance on precautions issued on Monday to help states in their response to COVID-19, the UN human rights office said international law allows governments to restrict some rights in order to protect public health, with additional powers available if a state of emergency is declared.

“But the restrictions need to be necessary, proportionate and non-discriminatory, and they need to be temporary, with key safeguards against excesses,” said Peggy Hicks, director of thematic engagement at OHCHR. – With Emmanuel Tupas, Neil Jayson Servallos, Rhodina Villanueva, Pia Lee-Brago