Families of EJK victims react to Duterte’s arrest

MANILA — In Navotas, a group of candlemakers bound by tragedy found solace in their craft after losing loved ones to the government’s drug war.

Since joining the Silingan Candlemakers in March 2024, Joel Ejorcadas, 36, said the group has become a source of light in the darkest chapter of his life. His brother, Jomel, was shot dead in August 2016 after being wrongly accused of using and selling illegal drugs.

“Nung time na dumating sa amin yung unos na war on drugs, napakadilim po ng pinagdaanan po namin. Wala kaming malapitan, wala kaming pwedeng maging kakampi nung time na ‘yun,” said Ejorcadas.

(When the deluge from the war on drugs reached us, we went through a very dark time. We had nobody to run to, nobody stood with is back then)

His brother once dreamed of fixing up their home, but after his death, that responsibility fell on Ejorcadas.

Through his work with Silingan, he was able to make it happen.

The community was founded by Redemptorist Brother Jun Santiago, who also launched a small coffee shop under the same name to support the livelihood of EJK victims’ families.

Their daily earnings of P900 to P1,200 from candle sales help them get by after losing their families’ providers. But aside from financial survival, Silingan has given them something just as important—a sense of community.

True to its name, which means “neighbor” in Bisaya, the group has become a source of emotional support for its members.

“During war on drugs, pag nakaburol yung biktima namin na produkto ng tokhang ay walang nakikipaglamay na kapitbahay dahil natatakot sila na madamay,” said community leader Mildred Ocampo.

(During the war on drugs, when someone died due to tokhang, people stayed away from the wake because they didn’t want to be next)

Tokhang refers to the government’s campaign of visiting houses of alleged drug personalities and convincing them to enter rahbilitation programs. It has since come to be used for extrajudicial killings from that period.

Through Silingan, she no longer mourned her brother in isolation. She found a community that shared her grief and stood with her in the fight for justice.

That justice seemed out of reach, until March 11, when former President Rodrigo Duterte was arrested on a warrant issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC) for alleged crimes against humanity.