Opposition Senator Leila de Lima on Tuesday condemned the reported torture and barbaric killing of a woman whose body was recently found floating near a beach in Sta. Cruz, Davao del Sur.

De Lima, a vocal critic of the Duterte administration, said such death highlights the reigning culture of violence and abuses in the country tolerated and encouraged by the present leadership.

The senator said police authorities should get to the bottom of the woman’s case and prosecute the perpetrator of the crime.

“Enero pa lang at parami na naman nang parami ang mga pinapaslang (It’s only January and the number of persons being killed are increasing),” De Lima noted in a statement.

“Authorities should leave no stone unturned in finding the victim’s killer, lest we want to embolden the perpetrators to further ‘kill, kill, kill’ because they can easily get away with murder,” she said.

Last Jan. 24, authorities confirmed that a woman believed to have been tortured was found lifeless and floating near a beach in Sta. Cruz, Davao del Sur last week.

Police said the victim’s body was found hogtied from her neck to her limbs with nylon rope and black twine, while connected to a water container with cement serving as anchor.

According to police, the woman also sustained a long laceration on her stomach while her face looked like it was struck using a hard object. Authorities are still trying to establish her identity and possible motive for the killing.

“This reported torture and killing of a woman is one of its worst forms. Appalling and unacceptable!” De Lima emphasized.

“When will these barbaric and lawless killings ever stop? While the rest of the country is dealing with the continued surges in COVID-19 cases, the violence and killings persist,” she pointed out.

De Lima urged the people from nearby areas where the woman’s body was found to cooperate with police to help catch the suspect in the crime.

“Any information you can provide can help solve the case and hold the killer accountable,” she said.