24-4-2024 (MANILA) Amnesty International has urged the administration of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to implement a clear and unequivocal policy to halt the “war on drugs” and extrajudicial killings.
In a report unveiled on Wednesday, Amnesty International emphasized that extrajudicial executions in connection with the government’s anti-drug campaign persisted throughout the second year of Marcos’s presidency.
According to the Dahas Project of the University of the Philippines Third World Studies Center, there have been over 600 drug-related killings since Marcos assumed office in June 2022.
“This indicates that extrajudicial killings persist and show no signs of abating,” remarked Butch Olano, Director of Amnesty International Philippines.
“Amnesty calls upon the Marcos administration to issue a clear and definitive policy statement to put an end to the so-called ‘war on drugs’ and extrajudicial killings,” he added.
While Marcos has continued the anti-drug campaign initiated by his predecessor, he has stressed a rehabilitation-oriented approach to the drug war. Amnesty International urged the government to allocate adequate funding for rehabilitation initiatives.
The recently published annual human rights report from the United States State Department also underscored that extrajudicial killings in the Philippines remain a “serious problem.”
Human Rights Watch, a watchdog group, also stated earlier this month that Marcos’s failure to halt violent anti-drug operations has emboldened local officials like Davao City Mayor Sebastian Duterte to revive his father’s “war on drugs.”
The International Criminal Court (ICC) is presently investigating alleged crimes against humanity in the “war on drugs” conducted during Rodrigo Duterte’s presidency and earlier, during his tenure as mayor of Davao City.
Amnesty International urged the Marcos government to cooperate with the ICC probe, rejoin the Hague-based court, and implement safeguards to prevent any administration from withdrawing from the tribunal.
‘Failed Miserably’ “President Marcos has disregarded human rights by ignoring the call for justice from victims of human rights violations, particularly victims of extrajudicial killings, by failing to safeguard human rights defenders and journalists, and by neglecting the struggle of ordinary Filipinos for a decent life,” remarked Olano.
“The Marcos administration has fallen short of its state obligation to protect, respect, and fulfill human rights,” he added.
Amnesty International called on the government to dismantle the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC)—a body established during Duterte’s tenure known for labeling civilians as communists.
The organization also urged the Philippine government to pass the human rights defenders bill, enact legislation providing adequate support for families of victims of drug-related killings, and repeal or substantially amend the Anti-Terrorism Law.
