Bishop asks government to give drug suspects a chance

A representative of the Catholic Church on Sunday appealed to the government to give suspects arrested in the war against illegal drugs a chance.

"We have to give...a chance to the people that are caught, being apprehended, and a chance for the people that are doing the apprehension," Naval Bishop Filomeno Bactol was quoted as saying in an article posted on the Catholic Bishop's Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) website.

“It would be good if the people [apprehended] will be given the chance to say something but [it is a] fact that when they [people being apprehended] pull the gun, the police officers are also trying to defend themselves,” he added.

The latest data available from the Philippine National Police (PNP) shows that a total of 1,645 alleged drug personalities were killed under the Double Barrel program, while some 29,331 others were arrested.

In the same article, Bactol was expressed his doubts that all killings were done by the government, noting that some of the murders could have been done by drug syndicates.

"For all we know, there are other factors like vendetta," he said.

He also noted that some of the killings could have been done in self-defense.

As of October 15, a total of 16 casualties were reported by the government—13 policemen and three from the Armed Forces.

Bactol's statements come after Filipino Catholic priests were reported last week to be afraid and unsure how to speak out against the war on drugs.

According to the Reuters report, more than a dozen clergymen said they were uncertain how to take a stand against the thousands of killings.

For his part, President Rodrigo R. Duterte earlier assured his respect for the separation of Church and state, amid such concerns.

"Let me assure that while I'm a stickler for the principle of separation between the Church and State, I believe quite strongly that there should never be a separation between God and State," he said.

Duterte has earlier asked his partymate Senator Emmanuel "Manny" D. Pacquiao to push for the passage of the bill reimposing the death penalty to boost the administration's campaign against illegal drugs. — Jon Viktor D. Cabuenas/BM, GMA News