CALOOCAN CITY – Earlier today, May 1, was the inauguration of “Dambana ng Paghilom,” the first ever EJK memorial site in the Philippines, which according to one of the EJK widows present at the event, would help expose the truth about former President Rodrigo Duterte’s violent and bloody drug war.
“…[W]hen this project came about, I was so happy because this would be the way for the truth to come out, that my husband did not die from natural causes but from gunshot wounds,” shared Aurora Blas, an EJK victim who shared her message to around 250 guests present at the La Loma Catholic Cemetery for the inauguration.
‘Natural causes’
Blas, who joined Program Paghilom after her husband’s killing, talked about how her husband’s death certificate indicated “pneumonia” as the cause of death despite sustaining gun shot wounds, specifically on the right side of the head.
“Even if the truth was as clear to me and to my children as daylight, because I was no longer thinking straight and because of my desire that his body be released and prepared as soon as possible, I turned a blind eye and signed,” she added in Filipino, detailing how she was also made to sign a waiver that said she would not press charges or pursue a case against her husband’s killers.
After a ribbon-cutting, EJK family members witnessed the inurnment of 11 urns of the loved ones they lost to Duterte’s drug war.
Statement of hope
For Arnold Janssen Kalinga Foundation (AJKFI) founder/president Fr. Flavie Villanueva, SVD, the memorial site and columbarium symbolizes more than just a final resting place for those killed.
“Dambana ng Paghilom is also a statement of hope. Evil will never persist if men, women, senators, ambassadors, people of good conscience, HR advocates, seminarians, sisters, religious, people at the margins will continue to stand firm for life, truth, and peace,” he said.
The priest, who started Program Paghilom in 2017, shared about EJK victims’ plight of being unable to prioritize securing their loved ones’ remains because of poverty.
Messages of support
Dambana is now a concrete answer to their needs. “This was once a hope, and it is now real,” he added.
For freelance photographer, journalist, and advocate Raffy Lerma, who has been covering the drug war for the past 8 years, the most disturbing thing he has witnessed is people’s indifference to the issue.
“What’s the most that I could not take is that we, Filipinos, allow the killings…Sa ating bansa, hinayaan natin na magpatayan tayo,” he said.
The following were also present to give messages of support to the EJK families:
- former Senator Leila De Lima;
- European Union Ambassador Luc Veron;
- German Ambassador Andreas Michael Pfaffernoschke;
- Dutch Ambassdador Marielle Geraedts;
- British Ambassador Laure Beaufils; and
- Senator Risa Hontiveros.
Program Paghilom is one of the initiatives of AJKFI, which specifically aims to recreate and empower EJK victims through psycho-spiritual interventions; legal assistance; educational assistance; among others. (Nirva Delacruz)