German embassy joins name for justice in unsolved homicide of Bacolod activist

Human rights teams allege Alvarez was amongst activists killed beneath the army’s Oplan Kapayapaan, which critics denounced as ‘the peace of the graveyard’

NEGROS OCCIDENTAL, Philippines – The fifth anniversary of the killing of a human rights defender throughout the Duterte administration was commemorated in Bacolod Metropolis on Sunday, August 17, with the German Embassy in Manila and a Catholic bishop urging Philippine authorities to ship justice within the still-unsolved case.

In an announcement, the German embassy stated, “We strongly urge the Philippine authorities to accentuate the efforts to conduct a radical and neutral investigation and produce these accountable to justice.”

The activist, Zara Alvarez, was gunned down close to her boarding home on Santa Maria Avenue in Eroreco, Barangay Mandalagan, Bacolod, on August 17, 2020, on the peak of extrajudicial killings beneath former president Rodrigo Duterte. She was 39 and is survived by her daughter, now 15.

Germany stated Alvarez’s case was a reminder of the hazards dealing with human rights defenders.

“Germany firmly believes {that a} vibrant civil society, the place defenders can function with out worry of reprisal or red-tagging, is important for thriving democracy,” the embassy stated, including that accountability “is a important take a look at for the Rule of Legislation within the Philippines.”

Bishop Gerardo Alminaza of the Diocese of San Carlos described Alvarez as “the very best story teller of pains and hardships of the sick, hungry and oppressed individuals,” calling her a mild good friend to the poor and a fierce defender of their rights.

“The night time she was murdered, they didn’t solely take her life, however in addition they robbed the poor of a mild good friend, a fierce defender of human rights,” he stated.

The Iglesia Filipina Independiente in Bacolod held a Mass in her honor and in time for her fifth demise anniversary. 

Alvarez spent practically two years behind bars earlier than resuming her work with Karapatan as a paralegal. 

She was listed in February 2018 as amongst over 600 individuals the Division of Justice sought to label as terrorists in a proscription petition.

Alvarez had beforehand confronted prices of homicide over a 2012 ambush in Cadiz Metropolis however was cleared after posting bail in 2015. Earlier than her demise, she labored with the Negros Island Well being Built-in Program and Group Improvement.

Human rights teams alleged that Alvarez was amongst activists killed beneath the army’s Oplan Kapayapaan, which critics denounced as “the peace of the graveyard.”

Karapatan-Negros stated Alvarez’s demise epitomized the plight of red-tagged activists who suffered vilification, arrest, and detention earlier than being focused by extrajudicial killings.

Alminaza urged continued calls for for justice, not just for Alvarez but in addition for different victims of assaults on democratic rights within the Negros Island Area. – Rappler.com