DAVAO CITY, Philippines – A former paralegal in General Santos City survived a gun attack on Monday night, drawing concerns from human rights lawyers of what is seen as continuing systemic attacks on human rights advocates in the country.
Warren Cahayag, a former paralegal or human rights worker, was shot by gunmen aboard a motorcycle around 7:30 pm on July 28. He was reportedly standing outside of the AmCoop store which he manages in Barangay Calumpang.
The Union of Peoples’ Lawyers of Mindanao (UPLM) said Cahayag was shot five times, and was rushed to an undisclosed hospital. A source told Davao Today that Cahayag is recuperating from his wounds.
UPLM raised concern that two former paralegals in Gensan have been attacked by gunmen a month apart from each other. Last June 23, Jejohn Macalintal, former deputy secretary of Karapatan Soccsksargen, was also shot by motorcycle riding gunmen inside the health spa where she was working.
Reports said Macalintal was harassed and red-tagged by the Philippine Army’s Task Force Gensan.
Cahayag was one of the founding members of UPLM in 2005 representing paralegals.
The attack on Cahayag happened hours after the State of the Nation Address (SONA) by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., a fact that lawyers and human rights advocates point out to the government’s failure to address attacks on human rights defenders.
“We call on the Marcos, Jr. administration to put an end to this senseless violence. His deliberate failure to acknowledge the continuing human rights violations in his fourth State of the Nation Address betrays a lack of serious commitment to human rights, sanctity of life, and the rule of law and justice,” UPLM said.
The lawyers’ group said that many of the attacks on rights defenders remain unsolved, including the murder of one of its officer Juan Macababad last September 15, 2021 in his residence in Surallah, South Cotabato.
UPLM made an appeal to the Philippine National Police Chief General Nicolas Torre III to create an investigation on these latest attacks, noting that Torre’s family hails from South Cotabato.
“We also call on the PNP, particularly Chief Nicolas Torre III, who hails from South Cotabato himself, to form a dedicated and credible special investigation task force to probe these attacks and ensure that not only the gunmen but also the masterminds are held accountable. “
Karapatan said that there have been 129 cases of extrajudicial killings (EJK), 15 enforced disappearances and 288 illegal or arbitrary arrests against human rights defenders under the past three years of the Marcos Jr administration since June 2022.
“A pervasive culture of impunity shields public officials, officers, soldiers, police and paramilitary elements who have perpetrated violations of human rights and IHL,” Karapatan said.
The National Union of Peoples’ Lawyers also said that if a probe must be formed to look into these attacks, it must identify the masterminds.
“This must go beyond identifying the direct perpetrators and must examine the broader political architecture, including the chain of command and potential involvement of the state. Anything less would not only fall short of justice but would further legitimize the machinery of impunity,” the NUPL said.(davaotoday.com)
