DU30’s priest critic says death squad after him
Biking Priest Fr. Amado Picardal has asked for prayers after suspecting that members of a death squad are out to get him.
Picardal, who is a known critic of President Duterte’s alleged extrajudicial killings (EJK), in his blog, said that he is not discounting the possibility that after the earlier killing of three priests, he could become the fourth victim.
Fr. Marcelino Paez was killed in December, while Fr. Mark Ventura was killed in April. The third victim, Fr. Richmond Nilo was killed last June 10.
Picardal said that while he was staying at a monastery located on a mountain here in Cebu, six men on board three motorcycles wearing full helmet went to the monastery and have been inquiring about him.
He admitted that he does not know why is he being targeted by the death squad and who is behind the attack against him.
“Has President Duterte finally ordered my hit? Or is it just some zealous henchman trying to please him? My source informed me that the order came from Malacanang. But I cannot confirm it. I do not have the complete answer…. Whatever happens to me – whether the order came from him or not – the blame will be placed on him for under his regime the culture of death has claimed the lives of 25,000 people. This regime has nothing to gain in creating a martyr, so those behind the project should (think) twice before carrying out their evil plan,” he said.
The priest has been actively speaking against EJKs since he was assigned in Davao.
He has preached and wrote against EJKs. He was the spokesperson of the Coalition against Summary Executions and assisted the Commission on Human Rights (CHR) and the Human Rights Watch to investigate the killings.
He also posted Collated Reports of these killings that were allegedly carried out by the Davao Death Squad (DDS) from 1998 until 2015.
He also helped in providing sanctuary to former members of the DDS who would be witnesses in the International Criminal Court (ICC).
“Since 2017, I was receiving information that the death squad was going to target priests and that I was on top of the list. When the three priests were killed, I was certain that I could be next. I even received an email message accusing me of being a drug addict,” said Picardal.
“Before I left Manila last March to start my life as a hermit, I received a text message from a reliable source confirming that I was indeed going to be targeted for assassination by a death squad,” he said in his blog.
“I always knew that my life would be at risk and I have accepted this as a consequence of fulfilling my prophetic mission. I am not afraid of death. I am ready to accept martyrdom if they catch up with me, but I do not seek it nor do I make myself an easy target,” he added.
Picardal has asked for prayers amid the suspicion that his life is at risk.
“I ask my friends to pray for our country and to pray for my safety,” Picardal added.
During the last four months, the priest has been living like a hermit and staying at the Redemptorist monastery.
He would only leave the monastery twice a month to bond with his fellow Redemptorists and get his supplies and visit a local coffee shop, not knowing that his routine could endanger his life.
Last August 6, their gardener told him that two men on board a motorcycle inquired about his whereabouts four days ago. The gardener became suspicious and did not disclose his location.
The gardener recalled that last July 7, two men on board a motorcycle also asked about him.
On August 11, the security guard told him that six men riding three motorcycles wearing full-faced helmets went near the entrance of the monastery and church between 5 p.m. and 6 p.m.
“I immediately concluded that they were the death squad and I was their target. Had I gone out, there would have been no escape for me. I recognized their modus operandi—that is what I learned from a former member of the Davao Death Squad when we were documenting the extrajudicial killings years before. It was a close call. I thank God for protecting me,” he said.