NUPL-NATIONAL CAPITAL REGION CHAPTER

The National Union of Peoples’ Lawyers-National Capital Region Chapter welcomes the decision of the Caloocan City Regional Trial Court Branch 121 convicting accused police personnel for the 2016 killings of Luis and Gabriel Lois Bonifacio in police operations undertaken under the Duterte administration’s Oplan Tokhang. It has been a long and arduous journey for justice, fueled more by the courage and determination of the Bonifacio family as well as supporting organizations and individuals rather than by any genuine effort on the part of authorities.

This homicide conviction has shown that the bloody hands of authorities are behind Oplan Tokhang, which left thousands, almost purely from the ranks of the destitute, dead. But it covers only four low ranking police personnel out of the handful others who were part of the operation, and proceeds from the premise that this was not a summary execution. This case woefully demonstrates how ascertaining facts and evidence and building a case for a tokhang killing faces immense challenges with police incompetence, inaction, indolence, and overall culture of impunity.

Luis and Gabriel Lois were but two of 6,252 killed in police operations. The number of those brought to court for killings barely reaches a hundred. There are thousands more who cannot identify whose hands pulled the triggers in vigilante killings. And yet, while we readily know who made the blueprint for widespread and systematic murders – they are the ones who remain beyond the reach of investigation or prosecution.

Today’s triumph is a comfort to the family of Luis and Gabriel Lois and a sigh of relief for us, the private prosecutors, our clients and friends in Rise Up for Life and for Rights, and others who supported this quest for justice. However, in terms of scale, today’s legal victory is just a footnote in a bloody chapter that has yet to end as bodies continue to pile up until today. This alone does not and cannot eliminate the imperatives for the prosecution of all those responsible for the killings in the domestic arena and in international tribunals. The struggle to seek justice wherever it can be found continues. #

References:
Atty. Julian F. Oliva, Jr.
NUPL-NCR chairperson
+63 917 546 5799

Atty. Kristina Conti
NUPL-NCR Secretary General
+63 929 820 7000
nuplncr2007@gmail.com