VIOLENCE OF LEGACY DUTERTE’S THE KILLING STATE

A HUMAN RIGHTS SITUATIONER | july 2021

IN THIS REPORT

1. INTRODUCTION | 1

2. STATE-SPONSORED VIOLENCE | 3

3. DISTORTION OF HUMAN RIGHTS AND SHRINKING OF CIVIC SPACES | 7

4. DEROGATION OF ECONOMIC, SOCIAL, AND CULTURAL RIGHTS | 13

5. CONFRONTING DUTERTE’S LEGACY OF VIOLENCE | 17

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The information in this publication may be reproduced for non- commercial purposes, in part or in whole, and by any means, without charge or further permission from the institution, provided that due diligence is exercised in ensuring the accuracy of the information reproduced; that the institution is identified as the source of the information; and that the reproduction is not presented as the official version of the information reproduced, nor as having been made in affiliation with or with For Inquiries: the endorsement of the Philippine [email protected] Human Rights Information Center. INTRO 1DUCTION President Rodrigo Roa Duterte was Change did come, after all, albeit elected in 2016 under a campaign in terms of high kill counts and platform that promised a no-nonsense immense suffering. Change, it approach to crushing crime, corrup- turns out, means living in a country tion and the illegal drugs problem. His besieged by extreme violence and campaign team packaged him as both widespread human rights violations tough and compassionate, with “Tapang at a rate and intensity not seen at Malasakit” and the battlecry “Change since Martial Law’s darkest days. is coming.”

This human rights crisis, made This messaging resonated with a possible by the violent so-called war populace who felt that the promise of on drugs, the widespread attacks better lives post-EDSA 1986 had never against human rights defenders, materialized and believed that the activists, and the media, and the ‘progress’ and orderliness in willful disregard for social and should be replicated throughout the economic justice, has caused untold country. would go on suffering and will have manifold to win by a very comfortable margin, impacts for years to come. getting 16.6 million of some 44 million votes, one of the highest voter turnouts Our task with this paper is in history. two-fold: trace this human rights crisis from 2016 to present by high- Now, in 2021, the is lighting its key dimensions and hurtling through a human rights crisis describe the impacts of this crisis made worse by a global pandemic. on Filipinos and the country’s democracy.

THE KILLING STATE: DUTERTE’S LEGACY OF VIOLENCE 2 STATE- 2SPONSORED VIOLENCE During his campaign, Duterte made This killing spree reveals the it known that his presidency would be lie that is Duterte’s pro-poor marked by violence: he promised to posturing. PhilRights’ documen- turn red with blood, to kill tation of victims of extrajudicial tens of thousands, implement a “shoot killings has revealed that most of to kill” policy and to ignore human those killed are male adults who rights in his drive to stamp out illegal were often the primary breadwin- drugs and crime. ners of their families, were low and irregular wage earners, of low

In different speeches, Duterte would educational attainment, and are urge the police and even ordinary residents of urban poor communi- citizens to engage in arrests of suspected ties. In other words, the so-called criminals and kill them should they war on drugs is a war on the poor. resist. He even guaranteed protection for police for when they have to kill Children have not been spared during operations. from the killings; in 2016, the president described children killed Mere days after Duterte was sworn into in the campaign as “collateral office, media reports flooded in, docu- damage.” The truth is that children menting the deaths of dozens of alleged have become easy targets. The drug suspects. A July 2016 report from Children’s Legal Rights and Devel- Al Jazeera, for example, tallied at least opment Center (CLRDC) has docu- 45 deaths during the president’s first mented at least 122 children killed four days in office alone. The death toll due to the so-called war on drugs quickly skyrocketed, both from police from 2016 to 2019 alone. operations and the sudden increase of vigilante-style killings.

THE KILLING STATE: DUTERTE’S LEGACY OF VIOLENCE 4 The pandemic and ensuing lockdown did not dampen the violence. In fact, Human Rights Watch reported in 2020 that deaths from the so-called war on drugs increased by more than 50% from April through July 2020, citing the Philippine Drug Enforce- ment Agency’s (PDEA) own numbers.

THE KILLING STATE: DUTERTE’S LEGACY OF VIOLENCE 5 Naturally, linking the government’s Instead of holding State agents violent approach to illegal drugs with accountable for human rights vio- its response to the pandemic starts with lations perpetrated in the context President Duterte himself. In the early of the so-called wars on drugs and days of the pandemic, during a televised terrorism, the president himself public address, the president uttered has assured them protection and these words: freedom from prosecution for their actions. “I will not hesitate. My orders are to the police and military, also the barangay, that if there is trouble or the situation arises that people The president has also been re- fight and your lives are on the line, shoot them lentless in his push for the res- dead. Do you understand? Dead. Instead of toration of the death penalty, causing trouble, I’ll send you to the grave.” premised both as deterrent and

In Mindanao, meanwhile, the Martial hardline punishment for heinous Law declaration put in place after the crimes. The insistence to bring back Marawi siege in 2017 and concluded only the death penalty not only con- in 2019, has also triggered extrajudicial travenes the Constitution but also killings, with rights group KARAPATAN goes against a worldwide shift away having documented at least 49 victims from capital punishment and de- in the island and an average of at least liberately ignores the country’s ob- one unsolved killing per week between ligations to international human 2017 and 2018 alone. These killings rights law as a State party to the primarily targeted indigenous peoples Second Optional Protocol of the In- and activists. ternational Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR).

THE KILLING STATE: DUTERTE’S LEGACY OF VIOLENCE 6 DISTOR 3TION OF HUMAN RIGHTS AND SHRINKING OF CIVIC SPACES President Duterte and his allies within ing critics and activists as enemies and outside of government have been of the State who are out to desta- tremendously successful in controlling bilize and prevent the country from the narrative on human rights. Their progressing, he is able to decimate virulent anti-human rights rhetoric legitimate opposition. was already in place during the election campaign, and it only worsened when Indeed, the distortion of human Duterte took office. rights and vilification of human rights defenders (HRDs) has been Their biggest victory, arguably, is in so constant that unfounded accusa-

successfully distorting human rights tions and personal attacks against as being a hindrance to national de- HRDs are routinely propagated. velopment. In rhetoric and in action, This has led to increasingly difficult President Duterte and his supporters working conditions for HRDs, who have led many Filipinos to believe that now routinely have to contend with national development is possible only harassment and disparagement through a violent, rule of law-defy- from the president’s supporters. ing, human rights-violating campaign against illegal drugs and the poor and At work is a wide-ranging ap- marginalized who are most associated plication of Pres. Duterte’s core with drug use. principle of governance: violence. The playbook is straightforward By dehumanizing people who use and chillingly effective—normalize drugs under a blanket adik tag and violence, frame civic participa- blaming them for violent crimes, he tion as a destabilizing force which convinced people that bringing peace must be subdued, and weaponize and order to communities require the legal apparatus against key civic bypassing established law enforcement society and media figures in order

procedures and due process. By portray- to demoralize and quell resistance.

THE KILLING STATE: DUTERTE’S LEGACY OF VIOLENCE 8 Those who voiced opposition were company ABS-CBN came to fruition targeted and suppressed, notably the in 2020, when his allies in Congress still-imprisoned Senator toed the line and refused the and ousted Supreme Court Justice Ma. company’s franchise application. Lourdes Sereno. Vice President Leni That ABS-CBN’s closure happened Robredo has been sidelined and con- in the midst of a pandemic—a stantly mocked by the President and his crucial time when the public needed allies. These are outsized reactions to unfettered access to informa- legitimate opposition by any measure tion and the company’s employees

but the fact that these leaders also needed to keep their jobs—seemed happen to be women reveal a still-vir- to matter less compared to the need ulent strain of misogyny in Philippine to satisfy Duterte’s whims. society that Duterte has gleefully par- ticipated in and exploited. Another crucial blow to democracy occurred in 2020 Equally alarming are the wide-rang- with the enactment of Republic ing attacks and discrediting of media or- Act 11479, or the Anti-Terror- ganizations engaged in critical reporting ism Act. Presidential spokesper- of the administration’s policies. The son Harry Roque touted the law as barrage of cases filed against social demonstrating the government’s news site Rappler and its co-founder “serious commitment to stamp and CEO Maria Ressa are blatant attacks out terrorism.” And yet, the law’s against freedom of the press and has provisions were widely panned by disrupted the media’s important role as legal luminaries, human rights the fourth estate. defenders, and ordinary citizens for their dangerous ambiguities and Duterte’s years-long threat to block for bypassing of many of the safe- the franchise renewal of broadcasting guards that would protect citizens

from government abuse.

THE KILLING STATE: DUTERTE’S LEGACY OF VIOLENCE 9 A joint motion for a temporary restraining order against the law was filed in February 2021 by 37 petitioners. The motion did not mince words and declared that the anti-ter- ror law “infringes upon at least 15 of the people’s fundamental rights as set forth in the Constitution including free speech, freedom of religion, freedom of assembly, freedom of association, freedom of the press, due process of law, freedom from unreasonable searches and seizures, right to privacy, right to travel, right to bail, presumption of innocence, freedom of information, right against ex post facto laws, right against torture and incommunicado detention and academic freedom.”

These are not simply legal arguments; their consequences hold concrete power over how active citizens can and would be treated by Philippine security authorities, whose

records are far from spotless.

THE KILLING STATE: DUTERTE’S LEGACY OF VIOLENCE 10 As the In Defense of Human Rights and Dignity Movement (iDEFEND) put The group expressed that it is it: “Far from addressing terrorism, [the “extremely concerned about attacks Anti-Terrorism Law] is meant to punish on human rights defenders and the people for their activism, their journalists, the vilification and boundless search for better lives.” criminalization of activists, the assault on press freedom and a new More chillingly, iDEFEND’s statement draconian anti-terror law.”

also issued this stark reminder: “Whichever way we move, we risk This reflects the overall dark death.” picture for civic freedoms in the Philippines and for human rights For HRDs and activists, these words defenders and activists who seek ring frighteningly true. Between 2015 to protect and advocate for these and 2020, 251 human rights defenders, freedoms. The pandemic notwith- legal workers, journalists, unionists standing, the Duterte government’s and family members were killed in the antagonism towards human rights Philippines, according to the United and their defenders were palpably Nations Office of the High Commission- stronger this past year. er for Human Rights (UN OHCHR).

Indeed, CIVICUS Monitor, a global research effort that tracks the situation of 196 countries regarding States’ respect for fundamental freedoms, has downgraded the Philippines’ rating from ‘obstructed’ to ‘repressed’ in

2020.

THE KILLING STATE: DUTERTE’S LEGACY OF VIOLENCE 11

DERO 4GATION OF ECON OMIC, SOCIAL AND CULTURAL RIGHTS In the face of all these attacks against support. But it also very trans- civil and political rights and democracy, parently moves the bulk of the tax the Duterte administration has not made burden to value-added taxes on any concrete progress in upholding basic commodities. and in the progressive realization of economic, social and cultural rights. This was essentially a tax increase For one, it has not made any coherent put on those who do not earn from policy on poverty eradication, which wages or salaries such as those in remains high at about 17% of Filipinos, the informal sector, farmers, fish- or a solution to the hunger and malnu- erfolk, and small business owners.

trition problem. Additionally, for the first six months of 2018, research group With national development equated IBON has estimated that runaway with increaed global competitive- inflation has eroded the incomes of ness, capital investment, revenues and the “poorest 60 million Filipinos” profits, the Duterte govenrment has leading to “losses of anywhere from implemented policies that have instead Php 993 to as much as Php 2,715” caused a deterioration in incomes and for each Filipino household. quality of life of ordinary Filipinos, foremost of which is the Tax Reform for For most workers, the twin effects Acceleration and Inclusion (TRAIN) law. of TRAIN and inflation have led to an erosion of purchasing power Meant as the primary means to and continued stagnation of wages. raise funds for the administration’s Meanwhile, Duterte’s campaign ambitious infrastructure spending via promise to put an end to “endo” the “Build! Build! Build!” project, the (the contractualization of the labor first TRAIN law was sold to the public force) and to give job security by as a means to dissolve income taxes for ‘regularizing’ workers has not ma-

many workers, thereby gaining public terialized.

THE KILLING STATE: DUTERTE’S LEGACY OF VIOLENCE 14 The passage of the Rice Tarrification Law in 2019 has allowed for runaway importation of rice. As a consequence, the crop’s farmgate prices dropped dras- tically, hurting the livelihood of local rice farmers. Reports in 2019 revealed that farmers sold their produce for as low as Php 17 per kilo, as compared to 2018’s Php 22 per kilo. In provinces like Nueva Ecija, farmgate prices are as

low as Php 7 to Php 8 per kilo despite production costs being around Php 12 per kilo. Moreover, the drastic drop in farmgate prices does not translate to lower market prices for consumers.

Two days before the presidential elections in 2016, candidate Rodrigo Duterte issued one last campaign promise before his supporters: A com- fortable life for Filipinos.

DuterteNomics, the administration’s “[DuterteNomics] started out with a centerpiece socioeconomic plan, reveals simple yet pragmatic economic strategy: Rid the streets our country [sic] of a security-focused approach to de- criminals, free our people from the velopment. Said Executive Secretary menace of drug abuse, bring lasting peace to our southern islands, and neutralize Salvador Medialdea: extremist and terrorist groups.”

THE KILLING STATE: DUTERTE’S LEGACY OF VIOLENCE 15 By arguing for security as the primary impetus for economic development, the Duterte administration’s economic agenda is inextricably linked to the ongoing bloody campaign against illegal drugs which has caused tens of thousands of deaths and immeasurable psychosocial and socio-economic suffering to the families left behind: deteriorating physical and psychological conditions; children were forced to quit school; and livelihoods were affected, aggravating the food insecurity the families were already experiencing.

THE KILLING STATE: DUTERTE’S LEGACY OF VIOLENCE 16 CON 5FRONTING DUTERTE’S LEGACY OF VIOLENCE In the final year of Duterte’s - pres there are efforts towards justice for idency, we find ourselves ruled by a the individuals and families vic- strongman who, in five short years, has timized by Duterte’s anti-human normalized bloodshed and impunity, rights policies, these are met with and whose governance of violence will an overloaded, inefficient justice have harmful consequences for years to system and a lack of transparency come. and cooperation by both police and military. With the normalization of extrajudi-

cial killings and the institutionalization Further, the work of helping those of impunity, rule of law has weakened seeking justice to access remedies, exponentially. The relentless persecu- to utilize redress mechanisms and tion of critics and silencing of dissent in general to defend and claim their has caused a drastic shrinking of spaces rights are made even more chal- for human rights defense. The damage, lenging by security concerns and not only on the meltdown of dem- fear of reprisal. ocratic institutions but also on civic behavior, will be long-term: long after All that said, there are glimmers the present administration is replaced, of hope. The Iceland-led resolution the rest of us shall still be mired in re- in 2019 before the United Nations building the foundations of a culture of Human Rights Council (UNHRC) human rights. compelled the UN’s Office of High Commissioner for Human Rights to Admittedly, the present administra- monitor and present a report on the tion has skillfully utilized the public’s Philippines’ human rights situation alienation with human rights ideals as in 2020. a shield against accountability. While

THE KILLING STATE: DUTERTE’S LEGACY OF VIOLENCE 18 This report, delivered by High Com- What these developments demon- missioner Michelle Bachelet before the strate is that exacting accountabili- 44th session of the UNHRC, acknowl- ty against those who violate human edged widespread human rights vio- rights has taken a more global lations and persistent impunity in the character, and is perhaps more country: effective for it, given how many of these perpetrators have personal “[T]he underpinning focus on national security and financial interests in foreign threats – real and inflated – has led to serious human rights violations, reinforced by harmful territories. rhetoric from high-level officials...This focus has permeated the implementation of existing laws and policies and the adoption of new measures – often at the expense of human rights, due process rights, the rule of law, and accountability.”

The Office of the Prosecutor of the In- ternational Criminal Court (ICC), which began conducting a preliminary exam- ination on the Philippine situation in 2018, has formally requested authori- zation to conduct a full-blown investi- gation into the Philippines after finding “reasonable basis to believe that the crime against humanity of murder has been committed on the territory of the Philippines between 1 July 2016 and 16 March 2019 in the context of the Gov- ernment of Philippines “war on drugs”

campaign.”

THE KILLING STATE: DUTERTE’S LEGACY OF VIOLENCE 19 It is also notable that despite the risks, These efforts, guided by a the ranks of human rights defenders renewed sense of grounding human continue to grow. Despite operation- rights discourse within the day- al and financial pressures, human rights to-day realities of the people, are organizations are beefing up; forma- slowly but surely bearing fruit. tions in local communities are gaining With national elections less than

numbers, and ordinary Filipinos are a year away, the importance of choosing to speak up online and on- foregrounding human rights and the-ground. dignity as the basis for leadership and governance cannot be under- Among human rights organizations, stated. there is also an ongoing harmoniza- tion of initiatives in documenting and In the final months of Duterte’s reporting human rights violations, in presidency, his legacy of violence educating grassroots communities on threatens to endure. While ac- basic human rights concepts, and in ca- knowledging the immense work of pacitating vulnerable sectors including rebuilding a human rights culture, victims of human rights violations and we also need to be reminded that their families with knowledge and in- our fight is animated by an abiding formation on the claiming and defense sense that no legacy can endure of their rights. in the face of hope and righteous action.

THE KILLING STATE: DUTERTE’S LEGACY OF VIOLENCE 20

THE KILLING STATE SERIES

The Killing State: The The Killing State: 2019 Unrelenting War Against Philippine Human Rights Human Rights in the Situationer Philippines

Findings of the 2017–2019 Documen- tation of Extrajudicial killings (EJKs) committed under the so-called War on Drugs of the Duterte Administra- tion (September 2019)

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