TALAVERA, Nueva Ecija -- Calls for justice
were aired following the the death of a lawyer in Nueva Ecija, with the
grisly killing being dubbed an affront to the legal profession and an attack on
the justice system.
Lawyer Bayani Dalangin was shot by an
unknown gunman inside his own office in Talavera town on Feb. 28. He was 73
years old.
The lawyer
was reportedly attending to clients when a hooded man entered the office and
shot him in cold blood.
The gunman
then fled in a waiting motorcycle.
Dalangin was
declared dead on arrival at the Talavera General Hospital.
The Nueva
Ecija chapter of the Integrated Bar of the Philippines (IBP-NE) issued a
statement last week condemning “in the strongest terms the brutal and senseless
killing" of Dalangin.
They
described Dalangin as "a good, brilliant and
respected Ecijano lawyer.”
In a
statement on March 1, Commission on Human Rights spokesperson lawyer Jacqueline
Ann de Guia also said that the shooting was another example of the worsening
impunity in the country.
"The
increasing number of violent attacks against and extrajudicial killings of
lawyers in the Philippines demand serious attention and concern from the
government and the people," De Guia said.
"These
grave threats and attacks impair the ability of lawyers and other members of
the justice sector to provide effective legal representation and hamper
them to freely exercise their profession."
Police
reports said they were looking into an old rift between the victim and other
lawyers as a possible motive behind the murder.
Both the CHR
and the IBP-NE called on the Philippine National Police and other law
enforcement agencies to conduct a swift investigation into the killing.
"If
these kinds of brazen evil acts are not curtailed and prevented, and oftentimes
result in violent killings of a comrade in the legal profession or even
ordinary citizens, members of the bar are demoralized," the IBP-NE said
for their part.
"We will
not be dissuaded."
The
Philippines is a state party to the International Covenant on Civil and
Political Rights, which commits all its members to guarantee and respect the
civil and political rights of individuals, including the right to life, freedom
of religion, freedom of speech, freedom of assembly, electoral rights and
rights to due process and a fair trial.
In its statement,
the CHR reminded the administration of these treaty obligations.
CHR also
called for the immediate passage of legislation to increase the severity of
penalties imposed on those found guilty of crimes against lawyers.
"Lawyers
working on sensitive and high-profile cases face reprisals and are constantly
wary of their safety and independence [as] the worsening impunity in the
country continues to undermine the proper functioning of the rule of law
including the right of people to remedies and fair trial," De Guia said.
— With report from
Raymund Catindig
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