Looking forward: what do they hope for in the future?

Another support for the surviving families is the GoJUST Human Rights Project. It aided in the creation of human rights hubs that assist the families of EJK victims to survive, through the provision of holistic services; these include livelihood services, shelter, psychological services, and legal services, among a few (GoJustHRP, 2020).

These human rights groups help to be the voice of the families of the victims in the hopes that more people can be made aware of their grievances. In Kian’s case, hundreds of people wore white t-shirts with “Justice for Kian” written on them. This and the outrage helped to get the attention of the public, causing the government to focus on his case investigation. The support of his community and the witnesses were big factors in the case’s success. Although justice has not yet been provided for all, human rights groups have not stopped to help lighten the situation of families in any way they can and continue to fight for individual investigation and due process to other thousands of cases (BBC News, 2018).

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Despite the hardships behind the path towards achieving justice, many survivors still have not lost hope for a better future. While some may say that their quest for justice has been unsuccessful, there are things that survivors of EJK do in small ways to contribute to what they want to see in the future of the country’s judicial system.

The volunteers of Rise Up Movement, like 36-year-old Celine Bautista who lost her stepson John Jezreel “JJ” David in the hands of policemen under the government’s WoD, stated that it is not easy to cope with the death, pain, and anguish that she and her family has felt. During the Christmas of 2017, she participated in gift-giving as her way of dealing with the difficulties she experienced in the fight against the war on drugs. Seeing the faces of the families receiving their gifts of groceries gave comfort and strength to her. She stated that the most important thing is for them to continue living for others (Ballaran, 2017).

The group’s convenor, Nardy Sabino, shared that Rise Up was formed in November 2016 with the belief that “victims of the drug war should not remain victims. Instead, they should rise above the tragedy and become advocates for social justice and change.” Celine Bautista’s path to recovery and healing by becoming an advocate exemplifies this. “If you are seeking justice, you need to get out. Let them know that even though it is hard to find justice, you continuously seek for it,” she said. Rise Up continues to provide an array of services for families affected by the WoD, consisting of physiological,