Youth group Anakbayan has scored President Duterte’s proposal to arm civilian volunteers to help fight crimes, saying that the suggestion is “dangerous and untimely” as the country continues to struggle from an ongoing health crisis due to coronavirus disease (COVID-19).
On June 25, Duterte has suggested to the Philippine National Police (PNP) that it may issue gun license to qualified volunteer civilians, in order to help in law enforcement.
“Instead of exposing untrained civilians to the dangers of anti-criminal operations prone to abuse, why not prioritize free COVID-19 test kits, financial aid, and vaccines?,” Jeann Miranda, Anakbayan national spokesperson, said in a statement Tuesday, June 29.
“Fund hospitals to improve the healthcare facilities in the country! There are so many problems to begin with, yet Duterte's set on augmenting the forces of the trigger-happy PNP,” she added.
If the President’s proposal eventually become a policy, Anakbayan fears that this could signal a new rise of armed vigilante groups throughout the country.
Meanwhile, farmers group Amihan has expressed its opposition to the President’s proposal, saying that such move would only lead to more violence and killings.
“Lalong titindi ang karahasan at pamamaslang kapag inarmasan ang mga sibilyan (Violence and killings will intensify when civilians are armed),” Amihan national chairperson Zenaida Soriano said in a statement.
“Kung iyon ngang mga pulis at militar na may training at lisensiya ay umaalagwa sa kawalan ng pagrespeto sa karapatang pantao, sibilyan pa kaya (If there are police and military with training and licenses who tend to have a lack of respect for human rights, how much more if they are civilians),” Soriano said.
“Malamang mauuwi ito sa mga goons at mga vigilante na magsisilbi para atakehin ang mga magsasaka, aktibista, kritiko ng gobyerno, at mga kalaban sa pulitika (This will likely lead to goons and vigilantes who will serve to attack farmers, activists, government critics, and political opponents),” she added.