The Archbishop of Lingayan-Dagupan, Socrates Villegas, who is also president of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines, spoke as the church launched a new prayer campaign to “heal the nation and stop the killings” in the country.
The Archbishop of Manila also called for an end to the “waste of human lives” and said the issue of drugs in the country “should not be reduced to a political or criminal issue” as it’s a “humanitarian concern that affects all of us”.
More than 3,900 Filipinos have been killed in what the police called self-defence after armed suspects resisted arrest.
Rights groups and lawmakers have however condemned what they describe as a “killing spree”.
The new campaign follows the 40-day ringing of church bells and lighting of candles for all the people killed in President Rodrigo Duterte’s 16-month war on drugs.
Speaking at a mass held at the Catholic shrine of Mary Queen of Peace, Archbishop Villegas asked: “Why do we applaud the killings?
“We chose violence instead of peace. We chose lies instead of truth. We chose to laugh at obscenities instead of correcting these. We chose to be silent than to be involved.”
Bishops in the country are calling on the faithful to pray with the rosary for 33 days until 8th December, which marks the feast of the Immaculate Conception, according to Reuters.
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