CRIMINAL CHARGES
A lawmaker has urged the House Quad Comm to recommend criminal charges against former President Rodrigo Roa Duterte for alleged violations of international humanitarian law and potentially murder, citing the thousands of deaths tied to his brutal war on drugs.
During the November 13 Quad Comm hearing, Batangas 2nd District Rep. Gerville “Jinky Bitrics” Luistro presented grim statistics on casualties from Duterte’s controversial anti-drug campaign, calling into question the legality of the methods employed under his administration.
Citing data from the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency and various rights groups, Luistro noted 6,252 deaths in police anti-drug operations as of May 2022 and an estimated 27,000 to 30,000 extrajudicial killings (EJKs), including vigilante-style murders.
Luistro also pointed to the deaths of 427 activists, human rights defenders, and grassroots organizers as of December 2021; 166 land and environmental defenders as of December 2020; 23 journalists and media workers as of April 2022; 66 members of the judiciary and legal profession as of December 2021; and 28 mayors and vice mayors as of December 2021.
The Batangas solon directly confronted Duterte during the hearing, asking whether his drug war complied with due process.
“Mr. President, my question is, when you implemented the war on drugs, did you strictly comply with the requirement of due process?” Luistro asked.
Duterte responded briefly, saying, “Yes.”
Luistro rejected his claim, arguing that the death toll and lack of judicial proceedings indicate otherwise.
“Contrary to the answer of the former President, I humbly believe that the former President and his war on drugs never complied with the requirements of due process,” she said.
“If, indeed, they followed the requirement of due process, wala po dapat ganito karaming patay at ang dapat maraming kaso na pending in court,” Luistro pointed out.
Luistro contrasted the staggering number of casualties under Duterte with the approximately 200 drug-related fatalities during the administration of his predecessor, Benigno Aquino III.
“The statistics show, Mr. Chair, this is almost or around 31,000 victims of the war on drugs,” she told the committee, chaired by Surigao del Norte 2nd District Rep. Robert Ace Barbers.
Luistro argued for criminal charges based on Duterte’s public admission of “full legal and moral responsibility” for police actions during the drug war.
“By Mr. President’s own admission of his accountability, both to legal and illegal actions of the police, it is the humble submission of this representation, Mr. Chair, that the Quad Comm is ready to make a recommendation for the filing of the necessary action in court—that is a violation of the law, RA 9851, Act Defining and Penalizing Crimes Against International Humanitarian Law, or at the very least, the murder cases, as defined under the Revised Penal Code,” she said.
Enacted in 2009, Republic Act 9851 defines and penalizes crimes against international humanitarian law, genocide, and other crimes against humanity, including systematic killings such as those in Duterte’s war on drugs.
The drug-related EJKs fall under “other crimes against humanity” as defined in Section 6 of the law, which includes acts like willful killing, torture, and enforced disappearance.
These crimes are non-bailable and carry the capital punishment of reclusion perpetua or life imprisonment.
Under Section 8, liability extends beyond direct perpetrators to those in positions of authority who order, solicit, or induce such crimes.
In this context, Duterte could be held liable as a principal by inducement for his role in orchestrating or encouraging the systematic attacks on civilians during his administration’s anti-drug campaign.
