Enough is enough!

IDEALS Inc. strongly condemns the murder of Atty. Rex Jose Mario Fernandez, a veteran human rights lawyer and founding member of the National Union of Lawyers in the Philippines. Atty. Fernandez was ambushed in broad daylight last August 26, along R. Duterte Street in Brgy. Guadalupe, Cebu City.  He is the 57^th lawyer killed under the Duterte administration.

The late attorney was a principled rights defender who stood by the marginalized and committed his life to standing against abuse and oppression. IDEALS grieves with his family and the legal profession, and also sympathize with the families of those injured in the assassination.

We also call for justice and a thorough investigation on his death and the death of many other people killed since the President took office.

Enough is enough! More lawyers have been slain in the Duterte administration than in the previous six presidencies combined. The administration’s inaction in the face of these and other killings are appalling and sends a message that such brazen acts of violence will be tolerated.

The President often touts his credentials as a lawyer, and yet he turns a blind eye as so many in his old profession are killed— the latest, on a street that shares his last name. He may not have pulled the trigger, but by brushing aside these murders he accedes to them happening again and again.

As a legal organization, IDEALS cannot stand by as we see our colleagues’ lives threatened and murdered without remorse. We join other legal groups in anger as we condemn the murders of honest people in the course of their profession. We will not tire of demanding accountability for Atty. Fernandez’s killing and for the thousands of deaths that have pervaded the Duterte administration.

We call upon the police and all investigative agencies to act expeditiously and hold perpetrators accountable for his murder. May you act according to your respective mandates and in true service of the people, leaving no stones unturned.