The Effects of the War on Drugs

on the Filipino People

Jerome Fernandez
Jivan Plata
BCS12

GSOSC001 (Mga Babasahin

Hinggil sa Kasaysayan
ng Pilipinas)

Mr. Jumel Estrañero

De La Salle University-Dasmariñas
I. Introduction
The Philippines and its government has been dealing with the drug problem for decades,
even as early as the 1970’s. According to the Dangerous Drugs Board (DBB, n.d.), it was during
1972 that the drug problem in the Philippines was starting to develop which caused the current
president at the time, Ferdinand E. Marcos, to implement the “Dangerous Drugs Act of 1972” or
Republic Act 6425 and later on organize the Dangerous Drugs Board following the declaration
of Martial Law. The DBB also further elaborated on many of the government’s programs and
projects to deal with the drug problem throughout the years such as the Drug Abuse Prevention
and Control Week, the formation of the Inter-Agency Committee on Drug Abuse Prevention
Education in 1974, Batas Pambansa 179 which classified and categorized drugs and their
derivatives which are prohibited, the Oplan Iwas Droga, and the “Comprehensive Dangerous
Drugs Act of 2002” to further mitigate and solve the ever-changing drug problem in the country.

During the administration of former president Gloria Arroyo, drugs and drug-related
crimes were still a big problem for the government. During her presidency, Arroyo declared war
on drugs. She said that the threat of “narco-politics” is real and used Colombia as an example of
the damage that the drug trade could inflict on the country, she also said that the Philippines
could be “Asia’s Colombia” if the drug problem is not dealt with (Donohoe, 2001). During this
time the Philippine National Police (PNP) also started to implement Presidential Letter of
Instructions No. 1 or the National Anti-Drug Program of Action with the aim to have a drug-free
Philippines by 2010, Anti Drug Units and the PNP narcotics group conducted a total of 36,070
positive narcotics operations and were able to seize 3.9 billion pesos worth of drugs (Official
Gazette, 2002).

President Rodrigo Roa Duterte was inaugurated as the 16th president of the Philippines
after he won the presidential election in May of 2016 (Gutierrez, 2016). For better or worse, the
drug problem in the Philippines became one of the main focuses of the government during
President Duterte’s administration. According to the Dangerous Drugs Board (n. d.), several
policies were created under this administration for the purpose of creating drug-free workplaces
and drug-free public workers in line with the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002. The
DDB also explains that the Philippine Anti-Illegal Drugs Strategy or PADS was created as the
new plan of the government against illegal drugs, aimed at reaching the goal of drug-free
communities by the year 2022. The war on drugs during the administration of President Duterte
has also been very controversial, with several people such as Felbab-Brown (2017) saying that
the President’s war on drugs breaks laws and cannot be justified morally due to the many human
rights violations.

II. Body
During President Duterte’s inauguration he focused on what he considers to be the
country’s main problems such as corruption, criminality, drugs, and the public’s distrust in the
government (Gutierez, 2016). During his presidency he approved Php 131.6 billion budget for
the Philippine National Police, which is nearly double the amount of budget that they had during
the previous administration, this budget increase earned the favor of the agency. In an effort to
encourage the police force, officers of the agency received cash bonuses depending on the
number of suspected drug users or dealers neutralized. It has been reported that police officers
receive around Php 8,000 - Php 20,000 for “street level pushers”, up to Php 1,000,000 for
“distributors, retailers, and wholesalers”, and around Php 5,000,000 for “drug lords”.

This strategy of the government to incentivize the killing of suspected drug offenders
resulted in a surge of suspected drug dealers or users getting killed. According to the Philippine
Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA), since Duterte’s victory in 2016 there have been a total of
6,215 drug suspects killed and 315,635 arrests as of October 31, 2021. As of December 2021,
23,270 barangays have declared themselves as drug free (Lalu, 2021). Although Duterte received
praise for his aggressive campaign against drugs, he also faced criticism from several media
outlets and even getting investigated by the ICC until the Philippines requested to suspend the
investigation and to let Philippine authorities investigate the situation. Throughout his
presidency, Duterte received many accusations regarding human rights violations. One of the
main effects and controversy of the government’s war on drugs are the number of extrajudicial
killings and vigilante style killings that happened throughout his career. According to official
numbers released by PDEA, the agency killed a total of 5,903 individuals during their anti-drug
operations between July 1, 2016 to September 30, 2020. But this number failed to include the
deaths that were led by unidentified assailants. According to the UN Office of the High
Commissioner for Human Rights, the death toll is at around 8,663, although according to other
sources and even the government’s Commission on Human Rights, they believe that the actual
number of deaths is triple the amount reported by the OHCHR (Human Rights Watch, 2021).

Figure 1. Drug War Victims

III. Analysis
The war on drugs in the Philippines during the current administration of President
Rodrigo Duterte has affected specific aspects of the country and various demographics and
people in different social classes. It also has several unintended consequences that worsened the
living conditions of some Filipino people. We will be taking a closer look at these in this part of
our paper.
Impact on Human Rights
One of the reasons why Duterte’s war on drugs has been extremely controversial is how it
seems to violate the human rights of the Filipino people. Nicholls (2020) argues that the war on
drugs is a war on the people and their human rights, especially those people living in poverty and
the different marginalized sectors of society. Thousands of extrajudicial killings have happened
throughout the country with reports showing that they may be encouraged by the police
themselves, along with the police seemingly being encouraged in shoot-to-kill policies with the
due process not being followed, the war on drugs seems to amount to murder that is allowed and
approved by the government according to Felbab-Brown (2017). She also mentions that aside
from the killings, mass imprisonment in the Philippines has also happened, with police officers
being given quotas and arresting people for trivial reasons such as them being shirtless or drunk.
Felbab-Brown argues that with all of these happening, the law and the human rights of people
seem to be continuously perverted during the war on drugs which continues to worsen the drug
problem.

Impact on Communities
According to Warburg (2017), one of the unintended consequences of the war on drugs is
the social fabric among communities being disrupted due to the fear-mongering effect of
violence towards anyone and anything that is drug-related. He explains that there has been
erosion of trust among community members due to their fear of becoming the next victim, since
it is not only those people who are involved with drugs who can be harmed, it is also those whom
are associated with these drug users and even bystanders who just happen to be around during
police operations. Warburg further explains that some members of the community can be “watch
dogs” where they report suspicious drug activities to the police, which may increase the risk of
community members being associated with drug users and therefore killings and violence from
the police. He also mentions that people do not know who to trust anymore during these times,
they therefore observe vigilance and distance themselves from even their closest neighbors and
friends for the sake of their safety and their survival.

Impact on Poverty and Lower Class Families

 The war on drugs has also negatively affected many poor families in the Philippines.
Amnesty International (2017) claims that the drug war in the Duterte administration is just a war
on the poor, with the majority of the victims of drug-related killings being people from
impoverished families. The organization also explains that many police officers have made
money from these killings, stealing money and other valuables from the poor families of the
victims of the drug-related killings. Amnesty International further explains that there are reports
showing that some police officers are secretly being paid when they kill suspected drug users
which give the officers an incentive to continue the killings, further making the situations of
these families more difficult. A study by Pangilinan et al. (2021) agrees that many victims of
drug-related killings are from poor families, explaining that poor neighborhoods are where many
of the killings are concentrated in. They also explain that most of the victims are the
breadwinners of their families, leaving the families with no head of the family to provide the
family with their basic needs. Pangilinan et al. also mentions that aside from these, the families
are also greatly affected by man-made and natural disasters such as flooding, fires and house
demolitions which further pushes the families into poverty.

Impact on Children and their Rights

Figure 2. “Our Happy Family is Gone”

 Sadly, children were also greatly affected during the war on drugs. The picture above was
drawn by Jennifer M. during her therapy after she witnessed police officers killing her father
(Dalena, 2016). According to Human Rights Watch (HRW, 2020), events like these are common
as police raids are often done when families are present, causing great trauma to the mental
health of children when they witness their loved ones being harmed or killed. Ever since Duterte
became the president, thousands of people have been killed during the war on drugs. According
to Human Rights Watch (HRW, 2020), many victims were also children that are under the age of
18. The organization also explains the other hardships that children face during the drug war:
getting bullied in school because he/she has a parent who uses drugs, not being able to continue
one’s education due to the loss of a breadwinner, and being forced to work in order to help
provide for the family.

Sylwander (2017) mentions that the welfare of children should be kept in mind by
government officials when conducting any plan or action. She explains that in order to stay in
accordance with the UNICEF convention regarding the rights of children (which the Philippines
is a part of), countries and their governments should avoid anything that violates their rights and
increase the risks that these children have to face. Sylwander also mentions that the Philippines is
obliged to protect and and fulfill the rights of the children in the country and that every child has
the right to live, to be protected from all forms of harm, and to develop and grow to his/her full
potential.

IV. Recommendations
The methods employed by the government and by the police officers during the war on
drugs are violent, harmful, unjustifiable, immoral, violate human rights, and are ineffective in
solving the drug problem. As such, the researchers agree with the recommendations of
Pangilinan et al. (2021) that the killings should stop and that financial, psychological, physical
and educational support should be given to the families and children affected by the killings. The
researchers also recommend that the government uphold human rights of children and adults
instead of continuously violating them, stop fear mongering which causes disorder in
communities, and find other less harmful and more effective methods of dealing with the drug
problem in the country.

The researchers also recommend more studies and research to be done on the effects of
the drug war in the Philippines in order to fully understand and spread awareness of the adverse
effects and the negative unintended consequences of the violent drug war. Additionally,
investigation on cases of extrajudicial killings should be performed as there could be possible
violations behind these cases and for transparency purposes.

V. Conclusion and Way Ahead

According to the statistics and numbers that were publicized, the war on drugs during the
administration of President Duterte has killed thousands upon thousands of people without any
legal process, violated the human rights of the people, pushed many impoverished families
further into poverty, and has not proven to be effective in solving the drug problem in the
Philippines. It also had other unintended consequences such as mistrust among community
members and physical and mental harm being done to children. The government’s anti-drug
campaign has caused a divide in society with people siding with the president, praising him for
his aggressiveness and the use of deadly force to deal with the drug problem, and on the other
hand, people criticizing him for his dictator-like leadership, human rights violations by several
police officers and vigilantes, and his choice of using a violent approach rather than more
peaceful options to combat the drug problem. It can also be said that President Duterte could
have over promised during his campaign period. The Duterte and Cayetano tandem’s platform
mainly focused on crime and corruption. He boasts his accomplishments of eradicating drug
users in Davao City during his time as a mayor. He promised that he would do the same if
elected president, although, as his term is almost at its end there is still a significant number of
barangays and areas that are not drug free. The war on drugs also revealed flaws and weaknesses
in our system. There were a lot of cases when human rights were violated, police not following
protocols and cases not undergoing the due process. This can be reviewed by the next
administration and hopefully be improved upon in the coming years.
VI. References:

Amnesty International. (2017, February 4). Philippines: Duterte's 'war on drugs' is a war on the
poor. Amnesty International.
https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2017/02/war-on-drugs-war-on-poor/

Dangerous Drugs Board. (n.d.). History. National Government Portal.

https://www.ddb.gov.ph/about-ddb/history

Donohoe, M. (2001, September 10). Philippine president declares war on drug trafficking. The
Irish Times.
https://www.irishtimes.com/news/philippine-president-declares-war-on-drug-trafficking-
1.326632

Felbab-Brown, V. (2017, August 8). The human rights consequences of the war on drugs in the
Philippines. Brookings.
https://www.brookings.edu/testimonies/the-human-rights-consequences-of-the-war-on-dr
ugs-in-the-philippines/

Gutierrez, J. (2016, June 30). Rodrigo Duterte inaugurated as Philippines president. Cable News
Network.
https://edition.cnn.com/2016/06/29/asia/philippines-duterte-inauguration/index.html

Human Rights Watch. (2020, May 27). “Our Happy Family Is Gone” Impact of the “War on
Drugs” on Children in the Philippines. Human Rights Watch.
https://www.hrw.org/report/2020/05/27/our-happy-family-gone/impact-war-drugs-childr
en-philippines

Human Rights Watch. (2021, January 13). World report 2021: Philippines. Human Rights
Watch. https://www.hrw.org/world-report/2021/country-chapters/philippines#
Lalu, G. P. (2021, December 9). Drug war death toll as of Oct. 2021 at 6,215; Over 315,000
arrested — PDEA. Philippine Daily Inquirer. https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1525920

Nicholls, J. (2020, May 15). The war on drugs is a war on human rights. Transform.
https://transformdrugs.org/blog/the-war-on-drugs-is-a-war-on-human-rights
Office of the Press Secretary. (2002, July 9). The President’s Day: July 9, 2002. National
Government Portal.
https://www.officialgazette.gov.ph/2002/07/09/the-presidents-day-july-9-2002/

Pangilinan, M. K. A., Fernandez, M. C., Quijano, N., & Dizon, Jr., W. (2021). Examining the
Effects of Drug-Related Killings on Philippine Conditional Cash Transfer Beneficiaries
in Metro Manila, 2016–2017. Journal of Illicit Economies and Development, 2(2),
110–126. DOI: http://doi.org/10.31389/jied.50

Sylwander, L. (2017, August 22). UNICEF statement on the impact of the drug war on
children’s rights in the Philippines. UNICEF.
https://www.unicef.org/press-releases/unicef-statement-impact-drug-war-childrens-rights
-philippines

Tomacruz, S. (2019, July 18). Duterte gov’t tally: Drug war deaths top 5,500 before SONA
2019. Rappler.
https://www.rappler.com/nation/235712-duterte-government-tally-drug-war-deaths-befor
e-sona-2019/

Townsend, M. (2021, December 1). The International Criminal Court is coming for Rodrigo
Duterte. Nikkei Asia.
https://asia.nikkei.com/Opinion/The-International-Criminal-Court-is-coming-for-Rodrig
o-Duterte
Warburg, A. B., & Steffen Jensen, Kaloy Anasarias (2017). Seven Essential Questions to Ask
About the Philippine War on Drugs: Answers from Bagong Siland, Metro-Manila.
DIGNITY – Danish Institute Against Torture.
VII. Message to Professor
Jivan: Thank you sir for being our professor for this semester! I liked how in every discussion,
you didn’t just focus on what was in our syllabus and that you also explained other interesting
things about Philippine history. You were lighthearted, made jokes, and made the discussions
intriguing. Thank you for keeping in touch with us through our group chat in messenger by
sharing updates, memes, news, etc. I also appreciated how you wanted to spread God’s love and
His Word in our last synchronous discussion which I also thought was important to do. Godbless
and good luck in your future endeavors.

Jerome: Thank you, sir, for being a kind and cool professor. Even though we only had our classes
online, you still managed to make it a memorable semester. I admire your hard work as a
professor, teaching multiple levels and different subjects whilst having a day job is nothing short
of incredible. You also show your passion for the subject through the events and articles that you
send in our group chat. Your friendly demeanor and knowledge on our subject make the class
worth attending. I wish you nothing but the best for your future endeavors.