Vigilante killings plague Philippines

Clarita Alia broke down in tears as she recalled how her four sons were killed by alleged members of a death squad in the southern Philippine city of Davao.

"It’s very painful to lose four sons," the 54-year-old mother said. "They didn’t have any chance against these killers."

Alia said the nightmare began in July 2001, when she prevented police officers from arresting her 18-year-old son, Richard, a known member of a street gang in Davao City, for alleged rape, without a court warrant.

"The police officers were so mad, they were humiliated because many people saw how I stopped them," she said.

Days after the confrontation, Richard was stabbed dead while drinking with friends in Davao City. Three months later, 16-year-old Christopher, accused of being a drug user, was also stabbed in a public market.

Two more of Alia’s sons, aged 14 and 15, were killed in separate stabbings in November 2002 and April 2007. They were accused of alleged theft and drug use.

Alia’s four sons are among nearly 900 people believed to have been killed by the notorious Davao Death Squad since 1998.

While officials in Davao City have denied the existence of the death squad, New York-based Human Rights Watch said the group has existed for the past 10 years and its activities were accelerating.