Human Rights Watch (HRW) on Monday chided Cebu City Mayor Tomas Osmeña for implying that only criminals, and not the victims, benefit from “human rights.”

“We would like to remind the good mayor that human rights apply to everybody, not just people the police accuse of criminal activity. Mayor Osmeña is barking up the wrong tree,” Human Rights Watch Philippine Researcher Carlos Conde said in a statement.

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A Sunstar report earlier quoted Osmeña as implying that criminals were no longer afraid to kill, using the cover of “human rights” to protect them.

“The victim has no human rights, only criminals have human rights that’s where we are today,” Osmeña said as he decried the spate of killings in Cebu City.

In response, Conde said the mayor should not “discredit” human rights but instead order his police officers “to uphold human rights and strictly follow lawful police procedures and more important, investigate and prosecute law enforcers implicated in abuses during anti-drug and anti-crime operations.”

“Human rights is not and should not be a hindrance to law enforcement – it should, in fact, help the police do their job effectively and in accordance with the rule of law,” HRW said.

However, Osmeña previously claimed that he no longer had control over the Cebu City Police Office (CCPO). /vvp

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