The Commission on Human Rights continues to express concern on the continuing violence against human rights defenders in the country, with the killing of Atty. Benjamin Ramos as another addition to the growing incidents of injustices to be reported. We note that, in April this year, Ramos was included in a poster, which was then disseminated in central Negros town of Moises Padilla, tagging him and other personalities as members of the Communist Party of the Philippines/New People’s Army/National Democratic Front. Ramos is known to be a founding member of the National Union of Peoples’ Lawyers and the secretary general of its chapter in Negros Occidental. But, regardless of his affiliations, Ramos continues to be a human and a Filipino whose rights was supposed to be protected by the government, including his right to life.
We call on the government to act with urgency in pinning down the perpetrators of this violence and proceed with active measures that would protect the safety of human rights defenders who continue to serve this country’s most vulnerable and marginalised. CHR-Region VI, through its sub-office in Bacolod City, already sent a Quick Response Team to investigate the case.