HUMAN rights groups here slammed City officials for their inaction over the increasing incidents of harassment against human rights defenders in the city.

Karapatan secretary-general calls on the Cagayan de Oro residents to vote wisely and choose officials who will upload human rights.

Sandugo, a Moro group, meanwhile called out City Mayor Oscar Moreno for allowing harassment and illegal arrests to happen in the city.

Amerah Lidasan said Moreno, being the chairman of the Regional Peace and Order Council (RPOC) in Northern Mindanao, should not act blind and deaf to these human rights violations.

"As RPOC chairman, payagan niya lang ba ang mga nahitabo nga illegal arrests dito sa Cagayan de Oro? Dapat bilang isang head ng isang ahensya, naa unta silay himoon para ma-restore ang human rights and peace diri to stand true to its organization's name," Lidasan said in a press conference last week.

Moreno has earlier said he will conduct an investigation to find out if there are indeed abuses, but up to now, there has been no action.

Fr. Khen Apus of Karapatan-Northern Mindanao said in a meeting with the mayor last week, Moreno gave no assurances to address their concerns, but only told them to "file a case".

Apus said Misamis Oriental Governor Yevgeny Emano also was not available for a talk with the human rights groups last week.

In an assembly of human rights groups last week at the Philtown Hotel, an anonymous person approached the hotel's security guard and handed him two brown envelopes.

Inside the envelopes were copies of flyers listing organizations of youth and teachers, tagging names of church workers, lawyers, rights advocates, and a journalist and his family, as "terrorist members and are responsible for recruiting residents in the city to join the NPA (New People’s Army)".

Over the past weeks, arrests have also been made against known mass leaders of organizations.