German Embassy urges Marcos admin to resolve case of slain activist under Duterte
MANILA, Philippines — The German Embassy in the Philippines has joined calls for the Philippine government to hold the killers of rights activist Zara Alvarez to account, saying on Sunday, August 17, that the government's ability to pursue justice for all slain rights defenders in the country is a "critical test for the rule of law."
Alvarez, former education director at rights group Karapatan, was gunned down by unidentified assailants in Bacolod City in August 2020. She is one of dozens of activists who were killed under former President Rodrigo Duterte, whose term was marked by a sustained crackdown on rights defenders and civil society groups on top of a violent campaign against illegal drugs.
Germany's embassy in Manila on Sunday issued a statement on the fifth anniversary of Alvarez’s death, calling her case “a stark reminder of the grave dangers facing human rights defenders” in the Philippines.
"Five years on, justice for her and her family remains elusive," the embassy said in its statement.
"We strongly urge the Philippine authorities to intensify their efforts to conduct a thorough and impartial investigation and bring those responsible to justice," it added.
Alvarez's murder occurred within a broader campaign of state violence under Duterte that human rights groups have documented as systematic and coordinated.
Before her death, Alvarez was repeatedly harassed, accused of links to the communist insurgency, and jailed on a murder charge that was later dismissed for lack of evidence. The Department of Justice attempted to declare over 600 people as "terrorists" in 2018, including Alvarez, though her name was later removed from the list.
Expressing its solidarity with human rights advocates in the Philippines, the German embassy on Sunday stressed that "a vibrant civil society, where defenders can operate without fear of reprisal or red-tagging, is essential for any thriving democracy."
"Accountability for this killing and all other killings of human rights defenders are critical tests for the rule of law. We believe that ending the cycle of impunity is essential, as it erodes the very foundations of a democratic society," it said.
Karapatan remembers Alvarez
In a separate statement, Karapatan on Sunday commemorated the fifth anniversary of Alvarez' death, describing their former colleague as “one of [Karapatan's] most courageous and dedicated human rights workers."
“Zara exemplified the red-tagged victim who ran the gamut of being vilified, unjustly arrested, detained and exonerated — only to be extrajudicially killed in the end for persisting in her advocacy,” the group said.
“As Duterte enjoys the right to due process accorded by the ICC … Zara and thousands of victims of extrajudicial killings are deprived of the most basic right — the right to live,” Karapatan said. “Justice remains a distant goal, while Duterte, his cohorts and his foot soldiers remain unpunished.”
Karapatan vowed to continue pressing for justice not only for Alvarez but for all victims of political repression, saying her life’s work “lives on in our continuing struggle to attain justice and exact accountability.”
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