Kids rescued in drug raid returned to parents

Three of the 12 minors rescued by the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) in a drug raid in Navotas City last January were returned to their families after almost a month of detention at the Bahay Pag-Asa.

The Navotas City Regional Trial Court (RTC) granted on Friday the petition for writ of habeas corpus filed by one of the parents for the release of her three daughters, aged 5, 8, and 13.

“There is no reason for the Bahay Pag-Asa to keep the children any longer, especially considering that there is no case against them and that the parents are more than capable to take care of their daughters,” said lawyer Ansheline Bacudio of the Initiatives for Dialogue and Empowerment through Alternative Legal Services (IDEALS).

Representatives of IDEALS, who assisted the parent in filing the petition, said the children were excited to return to school as they have not been able to attend classes after being held in Bahay Pag-Asa.

PDEA was called out by politicians and netizens after they allegedly paraded the minors they rescued in an anti-illegal drugs operation at the Navotas Fish Port Complex on January 13.

In a statement, PDEA DirectorGeneral Aaron Aquino said the children were not only drug users, but were used as lookouts and drug couriers for the alleged drug dens inside the fish port.

The parents of the children denied the accusation and made repeated requests to release them from Bahay Pag-Asa in Navotas City. However, authorities denied them, saying that the environment where they live is not fit for their rehabilitation.