Former Commission on Human Rights (CHR) Chair Loretta Rosales has appealed on Philippine National Police Director General Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa to respect human rights in police operations as the government steps up its war on drugs. “Let us learn from other countries, which have transformed their cities,” she said, citing New York City which now has one of the lowest crime rates in the United States. ADVERTISEMENTFortify police presence“We should fortify police presence and visibility in the streets, like what they do in New York,” Rosales said, citing a recent commentary by Portland-based theology professor Christina A. Astorga that appeared in the Inquirer. New York rode a crime wave in the 1970s and 1980s, but has since been transformed into one of the 10 safest cities in the world largely due to its “legal, intelligent and systematic” approach to crime, Rosales said. Rosales commended police for facilitating mass surrenders, despite reports that some people were taken from their homes and made to sign “confessions” under duress.

Source: Philippine Daily Inquirer July 23, 2016 19:07 UTC