Rights groups urged DOJ: Free political prisoners

MANILA, Philippines — Human rights groups Karapatan and prisoners' rights group Samahan ng mga Ex-Detainee Laban sa Detensyon at Aresto (SELDA) held a protest at the Department of Justice (DOJ) to demand the release of political prisoners.

The groups held the protest in front of the DOJ main office in Padre Faura in Manila on Wednesday, December 3.

In a statement, Adora Faye de Vera, SELDA spokesperson, said that 697 political prisoners are being held across various detention facilities in the country.

Among the 697 are “93 who are elderly and 89 who are seriously ill,” according to De Vera.

“Most political prisoners are peasant and labor organizers, human rights defenders, development workers and even ordinary citizens slapped by the DOJ with trumped-up criminal cases on mere suspicion of supporting the revolutionary movement," De Vera said.

In the same statement, KARAPATAN deputy secretary general Maria Sol Taule pointed out the contrast between the freedom enjoyed by the country's corrupt officials and the imprisonment of activists, dissenters, and ordinary citizens who defended human rights and denounced corruption.

"There is rank injustice in targeting those who fight corruption and advance human rights," Taule said.

“But turning a blind eye to the biggest plunderers and fascists like Marcos Jr. and his ilk,” she added.