Philippine diocese donates cemetery plot for drug war victims

The Diocese of Kalookan in the Philippines donated a plot of land to be used by families of the victims of extrajudicial killings in the country’s drug war during the administration of former Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte.

The 36-square-meter area within La Loma Cemetery in Manila will house the “Dambana ng Paghilom” (Shrine of Healing), which will also serve as the first memorial site dedicated to those who died in the drug war.

This project is a partnership between the Diocese of Kalookan and the Arnold Janssen Kalinga Foundation, which provides support to widows, orphans, and families left behind by the victims.

With the lease of the land free for the next 40 years, this allows relatives to give the remains of their loved ones a proper burial without having to spend a huge amount of money.

Once completed, the memorial will have 600 vaults, which can each house between four and six urns inside. 

Kalookan Bishop and President of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) Pablo Virgilio David joined the memorial’s groundbreaking ceremony on Monday.

In the presence of more than 30 family members of drug war victims, he participated in a symbolic burial of an urn containing the names of the dead.

A staunch critic of the drug war, Bishop David said that the shrine is meant not only to exalt the dead as heroes but also as a reminder for the living “so we don’t forget.”

“[The drug war] must never happen again,” he said. “This is not aligned with the rule of law in a civilized society.”

Also present during the ceremony is Priest Flaviano Villanueva, SVD, Founder/President of AJKFI, and an advocate supporting the families of drug war victims.

He said that the shrine would send a strong message that extrajudicial killings must never be tolerated.

“It will remain a beautiful landmark because, at the end of it all, just like our dear families, from ashes, they will rise,” said the priest. “We too, from our wounds, are to embrace healing, hope, and new life.”

Former Philippine Vice President Leni Robredo, former Senator Leila De Lima, forensic pathologist Raquel Fortun, and representatives from the UN, the German, and Dutch embassies were also present during the ceremony.

Although official figures on the Philippine drug war state that more than 6,000 drug suspects were killed in drug operations between July 2016 and June 2022, human rights groups claim that the number could go as high as 30,000.- Luke Godoy