Crime

Intro:
Crime is present in various forms in the Philippines, and remains a serious issue throughout the
country. Illegal drug trade, human trafficking, arms trafficking, murder, corruption and domestic
violence remain significant concerns. One is example of murder in 2014, the Philippines had a murder rate
of 9.84 per 100,000 people, with a number of 9,784 recorded cases. Organized crime Organized crime in
the Philippines can be linked to certain families or barkadas groups who perpetrate crimes ranging
from extortion, sale of illegal narcotics and loan sharking to robbery, kidnapping, and murder-for-hire. Illegal
drug trade is a major concern in the Philippines. Meth "shabu" and marijuana "weeds" or "damo" are the
most common drugs accounting most drug-related arrests. Most of the illegal drug trade involved members
of large Chinese triad groups operating in the Philippines, owing to its location on drug smuggling routes.
This article is taken by World Nomads. June 9, 2010. Retrieved June 12, 2013.
As published by Statista Research Department on Dec 6, 2021. The Philippines has a moderately high rate
of crime, violence, and terrorism. In 2020, the country was on the bottom five of the order and security
index ranking across the Asia Pacific region. Equally, the Philippines was among those with the
highest incarceration rate in every hundred thousand inhabitants. Crime rates were particularly high in
poorer neighborhoods and areas with larger populations and higher unemployment.
One common type of crime is War on Drugs. After taking office on June 30, 2016, the Philippine president
launched an intense crackdown on illegal drug use and drug trafficking. As of 2020, over 62
thousand illegal drugs cases were reported and about 69 thousand individuals were arrested. During this
campaign, those involved with the use and selling of drugs were warned to surrender and undergo a
recovery and wellness program. However, numerous allegations of extrajudicial killings and police brutality
against suspected drug users and traffickers were raised resulting in the International Criminal Court (ICC)
investigating these cases of violence, despite the refusal of the Philippine government to cooperate.
Another common type of crime is illegal Drug Trafficking. The illicit drug trade now poses a grave threat to
national security. The Philippines has become a manufacturing center, processing shabu in clandestine
and not-so-clandestine drug laboratories, even in Metro Manila. Not only have illegal drugs been linked to
the commission of violent crimes, but they have also been strongly connected to the continued existence of
threat groups in the country today. Illegal drugs have spawned other big-time crimes such as money
laundering and kidnapping-for-ransom. It was observed that foreign nationals are involved in almost all the
big-volume seizures of illegal drugs

The Drug war rages on in the Philippines. Accordance to this article by Tomas Buenaventura (ACLED
Researcher) last month, the Philippine Department of Justice (DOJ) completed a review into 52 deaths
during police anti-drug operations (Manila Bulletin, 3 October 2021), concluding that criminal charges
ought to be levied against 154 police officers (Reuters, 4 October 2021). This marks a rare admission
by the Philippine state that it may be complicit in abuses stemming from the war on drugs which
continues to rage on. While the 52 deaths under investigation represent a very small fraction of drug
war fatalities, the justice minister announced last month that the DOJ will now look into thousands of
other killings that have resulted from anti-drug operations (Reuters, 20 October 2021). Following the
announcement, President Rodrigo Duterte stated his admission of full responsibility for the drug war,
though “maintained he will never be tried by an international court” (Reuters, 21 October 2021). His
comments came as the judges at the International Criminal Court (ICC) approved a formal investigation
into possible crimes against humanity committed under his leadership (Reuters, 15 September 2021).
The government admits that over 6,000 killings have occurred during police operations in association
with the drug war. Many officers, however, have already been absolved of any wrongdoing in those
incidents during internal police investigations. While the DOJ’s plan to review these killings is a
welcome step for many victims’ families, analysis of new ACLED data finds that the civilian toll of the
war on drugs, perpetrated by the state and its supporters, is much higher than the official figures
suggest: at least 7,742 Philippine civilians1 have been killed in anti-drug operations since 2016, 25%
higher than the government’s count, even by a conservative estimate.
While the overall rate of violence has declined since the height of the drug war in 2016, when Duterte
first took office, there have been important changes in trends, including a shift in the primary
perpetrators of the war, as well as the geography of violence. 

Anti-drug ‘vigilantes’ largely assumed to have links to the Philippine security infrastructure — were
responsible for nearly half, over 48%, of civilian targeting during the early days of the drug war in 2016.
Since 2020, however, there has been an upward trend in the proportion of state involvement in drug
war violence.

The Philippine state has taken an increasingly large role in targeting civilians itself, no longer trying to
create distance by ‘outsourcing’ the majority of violence to vigilantes. So far in 2021, state forces have
accounted for 80% of civilian targeting in the drug war. The shift appears to be driven by increased
scrutiny around vigilantes by the media and international community, as well as dynamics around
competing state priorities as the government fights other wars along multiple fronts.  
The geography of violence too has shifted, from Metro Manila to Central Luzon, initially coinciding with
the reassignment of top police officials from the former to the latter (Rappler, 24 February 2019). More
recently, new frontiers have emerged within Central Luzon, with violence shifting from Bulacan
province to Nueva Ecija province — now the epicenter of the drug war — as police in Central Luzon
continue to be rewarded by the Duterte administration.

These trends, coupled with Duterte’s own admission of culpability last month, underscore the need for
an independent investigation into crimes against humanity — especially as the war continues to not
only rage on, but also to diffuse beyond Metro Manila. 
BONG GO

Crime and War on Drugs

According to this article in April 2019, a series of videos linking Dutertes’s family members
and close aide to illegal drug trade. In one of the videos, an individual called “Bikoy”
claimed that Go – is allegedely one of the big bosses in a drug syndicate – owns four local
bank accounts into which drug money is funneled using the codename “TESOROGOLF-
TSG002”. He pointed out the full name of Christoper Lawrence “Bong” Tesoro Go.
“Bikoy” who claimed to be a formere record keeper of a drug syndicate operating in
Southern Luzon and Visayas, said that Go has a dragon tattoo on his back that bears the
alphanumeric code “COATLIBRA-0018” from the drug transactions. The video raised the
issue that Go is using drug money to fund this senatorial campaign.
Go denied the accusations of him having the dragon tattoo and being involved in a drug
ring. As he will never get involved in illegal drugs considering his former boss also hate
drugs. Later Malacañang dismissed the allegations as “pure and simple black
propaganda”.

In 2020 according to an article by The Manila Times. Bong Go reiterated President

Dutere’s call for the reimposition of the death penalty by lethal injection for crimes under
the Comprehensive Dangerous Act of 2002. “In addition to the strengthened campaign of
law enforcers to eradicate illegal drugs and criminality, reimposing the death penalty can
be a strong deterrent for the commission of heinous crimes. In effect, if we can stop crimes
from happening, unfortunate encounters in police operations will also be avoided and lives
of both police and the public can be protected,” Go said. He also supported Duterte for
having the same fervor against corruption and abusive business practices, taking
advantage of the vulnerabilities of the people during this pandemic by selling overpriced
medicines and supplies. Go said that abusers should be prosecuted to the full extent of the
law.

As part of his continued campaign on fight against drugs. In November 2021, Go

suggested that all election candidates must do a voluntary drug test to ensure that they are
ready to fully commit to the people and set a good example to the Filipinos. He then
emphasized that he is ready to expand the programs and positive changes that Former
President Duterte administration started. Taken from “- Pilipino Star Ngayon –“