(Eagle News) — Senator Risa Hontiveros has filed a resolution seeking to declare Aug. 16 as the National Day of Remembrance in commemoration of what she said were the extra-judicial killings in the government’s war on drugs.
“We have the duty to remember. Amid the deluge of fake news and the systemic attempt at data obfuscation and revisionism to cover up the thousands who have died under President (Rodrigo) Duterte’s brutal drug war, we must not allow Kian and all the EJK victims to be rendered nameless, invisible and forgotten,” Hontiveros said in explaining the reason behind her filing of Senate Resolution No. 848.
Hontiveros was referring to Kian Delos Santos, the 17-year-old boy who was killed in an anti-drugs operation by Caloocan police last year.
The Caloocan police, however, said Delos Santos, a known drug pusher in the area, fought back, so they were forced to retaliate.
Criminal charges were filed against three Caloocan policemen and a police asset for allegedly framing the boy after several witnesses surfaced saying the boy never fought back.
According to Hontiveros, a memorial marker will be unveiled in Caloocan in commemoration of the first death anniversary of Delos Santos and “all EJK victims.”
“The act of remembering is an act of defiance against the killings. To forget is to give consent,” Hontiveros said.