Social Impacts

In the same report, the victim’s wife and mother to their children said:

“It’s hard because you don’t know how you’re going to start, how you’re going to fend for your children, how you’re going to send them to school, and how you’re going to pay for their daily expenses and their meals. There are times they can’t go to school because they don’t have school allowance. We lost our tap water because we can’t pay the water and electricity bills, and many more things “(Human Rights Watch, 2016).

The traumatic experiences they went through not only affected them psychologically but their financial and economic state as well.

SOCIAL IMPACTS

As the surviving families seek safety, the social cohesion of their own families, communities, and neighborhoods are also disrupted. According to PhilRights’ documentation of EJKs related to WoD (2019), families still suffer months and even years after the incident. As the organization conducted their field work and data gathering in communities that are heavily affected by the WoD, members from urban poor communities in Bulacan, Caloocan, Sampaloc, and Navotas, shared their experiences and concerns. Most interviewees expressed their fears for their securityas they understand that these incidents are violations against their basic human rights. Specifically, the families left behind feel that their community and their own home are no longer a safe space for them. The trust between neighbors and community members was also tainted as everyone became vigilant with each others’ actions, and there seems to be confusion on where the community can turn to when there are instances of HRV.

One of the interviewees from Bulacan said:

“Dahil nga doon sa mga nangyayari, parang hindi ka na secure doon sa iyong community kasi mismong mga opisyal ng barangay kasama sa mga nang-raid. May takot nang namamayani, nakikiramdam na ang lahat tuwing gabi at hindi na makatulog. May epekto ‘yung halos linggo-linggo ay may pinapatay. (Because of the incident, you can no longer feel secure in your community. Because even the barangay officials are accomplices during raids. There is a prevailing fear, everyone is vigilant at night and can no longer sleep. The almost weekly killings had an effect [on the community].)” (PhilRights, 2019).

19

A sense of helplessness to attain justice for the families of those left behind was also a prevailing emotion. An interviewee shared:

“Wala kaming nakamit na hustisya diyan. Kahit gusto naming ilaban, di namin mailaban kasi nakatakip ‘yong mga mukha ‘nong mga pumatay. Madaming nakakita na mga kapitbahay na maraming pumasok, na marami sa harap ng bahay namin, pero hindi nila ma-i-describe yong mga mukha dahil nga mga naka-maskara. Kaya kahit gusto namin ilaban, wala kaming magawa. (We were not able to achieve justice. Even though we wanted to fight for it, we cannot demand because the perpetrators were wearing masks. Many of our neighbors saw that there were several people that went inside our house but they cannot describe them because they were wearing masks. That’s why even though we wanted to fight for it, we cannot do anything.)” (PhilRights, 2019).

The threat to the security of the families who were left behind and community members in general has disrupted their way of living and the activities and norms that they have in their small communities. Most of them are left with no choice but to leave their homes because of fear that the tragedy could happen again to their family, their relatives, friends, and neighborhood. As the interviewee recalls the impact of killings in their area, they claimed:

“Wala na silang kalayaan. Wala ng katahimikan sa puso nila. Ultimo pagtira sa bahay nila hindi na nila magawa kasi mas gugustuhin nilang magtago kesa balik-balikan sila kasi hindi naman natatapos sa pagpatay sa kaanak nila. Binabalik-balikan ang pamilya. May cases na patay na si kuya, nakakulong si ate, nakakulong si bunso, nakakulong si nanay. Iniisa-isa ‘yung mga natitirang kamag-anak. Kaya dahil sa takot ay umaalis na lang sila. (They no longer have freedom. There will no longer be a moment of peace in their heart. Even just living in their house, they can no longer afford that because they would prefer to hide than experience the perpetrators to keep on coming back and would not stop until they killed their relatives. They [perpetrators] keep on coming back to the families. There are cases where the older brother is already dead, the older sister is in jail, the youngest child is in jail, the mother is in jail. They go after each of the family members. Because of fear they just leave.)” (PhilRights, 2019).

20

21

Another shared:

“Unang-una na nararamdaman nila ay takot. Takot na maulit muli, takot na balikan sila, takot na pati mga anak ay madamay. Takot na sila sa ganong sitwasyon na karamihan ng napapatay ay walang kadahilanan. Kaya para sa kanila hindi na ligtas ‘yung buhay nila. Nawalan na sila ng seguridad. Na kahit sino, bata man o matanda, ay pwedeng kitilin ang buhay. (The first thing they feel is fear. Fear for the incident to happen again, fear that perpetrators will come and go after them, fear that their children will get involved. They are already afraid to be in that position where people get killed without any reason. That’s why for them their lives were no longer safe. They lost their sense of security [knowing] that anyone, children or elderly, can be killed.)” (PhilRights, 2019).

These statements show the consequences of EJK on the social life and functioning of the individuals/families who were affected. These changes could include “feeling alone, wanting to isolate yourself from socializing, finding it hard to pretend to feel alright, being pushed to be social by others, feeling detached from others, angry that others’ lives are going on as usual and yours isn’t, and not wanting to be alone or feeling needy and clingy” (Family Caregiver Alliance, 2013). These vary since it merely seeks to illustrate the most frequent reactions of persons towards a loved one’s death.

In the context of families and individuals affected by the WoD, the rabid killings have created communities of people that live in fear and are struggling to trust anyone. This is in contrast with how Filipinos value a strong sense of camaraderie (bayanihan) that is not only visible during challenging times but also in their everyday lives. This culture and the prevalent sense of belongingness in Filipino communities were threatened by the seemingly endless killings even amid other pressing matters, such as the pandemic, which certainly would have been better addressed with camaraderie and communal values (BALAY Rehabilitation Center & DIGNITY-Danish Institute Against Torture for the Global Alliance, 2017).

Sadly, the relations of some community members have become akin to walking on eggshells. Mistrust and fear have been the prevalent emotions that community members feel. This disrupted the social fabric of Filipino communities as some individuals and families now keep distance from one another in the fear of being suspected as someone involved with illegal drugs. This has significantly altered the way communities engage and treat each other (BALAY Rehabilitation Center & DIGNITY-Danish Institute Against Torture for the Global Alliance, 2017).