Public Attorney's Office: Commission on Human Rights must stop 'biased' probe

MANILA, Philippines - The Public Attorney’s Office (PAO) asked the Commission on Human Rights yesterday to stop its investigation of the EDSA encounter that left three suspected car thieves dead, citing CHR chairwoman Leila de Lima’s “bias and partiality” against the 29 policemen implicated in the controversy.

Chief Public Attorney Persida Rueda-Acosta, along with lawyers of the policemen involved in the operation, also said they will file a motion for reconsideration before the National Police Commission (Napolcom) to lift the preventive suspension imposed on the policemen.

“We might file the motion on Monday. We will cite that the policemen did not commit any grave offense and there were no lapses in the said police operation,” Acosta told reporters in a press conference yesterday in Quezon City.

In a letter to De Lima dated yesterday, Acosta and the lawyers said that with the “obvious hostility” that De Lima has allegedly displayed toward the policemen, “it is inevitable that the CHR is very eager to make its biased conclusions official to save the agency’s face.”

The lawyers said it was “glaringly apparent” that De Lima “could not give an objective investigation” of the incident, based on the comments she made when she was shown the footage caught on camera by a news team of ABS-CBN.

De Lima was quoted as saying “Jesus Christ! This (is) very disturbing and highly questionable in our viewpoint… This is potentially a case of excessive and blatant violation of operational guidelines.”

The lawyers said De Lima’s statements put the policemen “at a grave disadvantage” in the CHR’s investigation because De Lima “has the control and supervision over the entire agency.”

CHR to continue probe

CHR Commissioner Rachel Quisumbing, responding to Acosta’s statement, said the commission has a “constitutional duty” to investigate possible human rights violations relating to civil and political rights, particularly under Article 13, Section 18 of the Constitutuion.

“We feel this is a case that should be looked into, especially (since the footage was aired on ABS-CBN, this)… made the case important to the Filipino people.” She aid.

Quisumbing also defended De Lima, who is currently in New York, saying the CHR is a collegial body and “we share initial findings” because “our inquiries and opinions are transparent.” 

Acosta and the lawyers also expressed their plan to ask Interior and Local Government Secretary Ronaldo Puno to order Napolcom vice chairman Eduardo Escueta to inhibit himself from the administrative probe because of his premature pronouncements against the policemen.

According to Acosta, the vilification of the policemen will only embolden criminals and endanger the community in the long run.

“These policemen have death threats… The ones who will be happy if these policemen are punished and jailed are the criminals,” Acosta said, citing cases filed and arrest warrants issued against the three slain suspects.

She added that the policemen “should be given medals and not meted with suspension” because no civilians were hurt or killed during the car chase that started in Mandaluyong and ended in Quezon City.

Acosta maintained that the Feb. 17 encounter was a legitimate police operation and not a rubout, and that there was definitely no excessive force on the part of the policemen from the Highway Patrol Group and the Anti-Carnapping Section of the Quezon City Police District.

“The policeman was forced to fire back because (suspect Rolando) Batapa fought (and fired as policemen were taking him out of the vehicle to bring him to a hospital)…. If the policemen really intended to kill the suspects, they could have just killed them right at the start in Mandaluyong,” she said.

The PAO’s forensic consultant and the medico-legal doctors from the police also questioned pronouncements made by Dr. Raquel Fortun, who was commissioned by the CHR to do a re-autopsy.

PAO forensic consultant Dr. Erwin Erfe said the re-autopsy done by Fortun and her opinions “are highly suspect having been based on ‘contaminated’ and’degraded’ evidence.”

According to Erfe, the re-autopsy by Fortun was done after the wounds on the suspects, specifically on Batapa, were “surgically probed” at the hospital.

“In court, what is being considered is the first autopsy wherein the body is fresh. The reliability of subsequent autopsies is very limited especially before the courts,” Erfe said.