Name: What Is Fueling The Philippines' Violent Drug War?
Uploaded: 2016-08-30T05:11:06.000Z
Duration: 3 min 38 s
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In August 2016, The United Nations urged the Philippines’ new president, Rodrigo Duterte

(Rod-rigo Du-ter-tay) to stop promoting the unlawful killings of suspected drug users.

Adverbs of degree

In just three months, scores of people have been killed as a result of Duterte’s (Du-ter-tay)

Although this brutal rhetoric has shocked many outside of the Philippines, those who

voted for Duterte (Du-ter-tay) point to widespread crime and drug addiction as issues only solvable

So how is Duterte cracking down in his violent war on drugs and crime?

Well, Duterte’s focus on crime is not unfounded.

Before his presidency he was Mayor of Davao  (Da-vow) City, the fourth most crime-ridden

city in the country, the second highest for rape, and the highest for murder.

From 2010-2015, it saw more than 37,000 crimes, including murder, homicide, physical injury,

And this trend across the country has been on the rise.

In 2015, crime rates jumped by nearly 50% from January to June.

In 2005, Philippine police reported to have solved upwards of 90% of cases, but by 2014,

fewer than a third of cases were said to have been solved.

The police allege that this is not the result of increasing crime, but underreporting in

Nonetheless, Duterte has singled out drug use as the primary enemy in his new regime.

The president has been quoted encouraging people to kill drug users themselves as an

In just the three months following Duterte’s election, 1,900 people and counting have been

reported killed by police and vigilantes, with many bodies bearing cardboard signs noting

their alleged crimes, mostly drug related.

In fact, the Philippines does suffer from a widespread drug problem.

The most commonly used illegal drug is crystal methamphetamine, also called “shabu”[SHA-boo],

accounting for nearly 90% of drug seizures in 2014.

Three years prior, the United Nations reported that the Philippines was the largest user

of Shabu in East Asia, although the drug itself originates mostly from China.

Chinese criminal syndicates traffic the drug through the Philippines, accounting for its

In the most populated metro area of Manila, roughly 92% of the districts are affected

But the response by the government and police has been shockingly excessive.

Besides widespread murder by civilians, sanctioned by the new president, the police themselves

are regularly accused of committing criminal acts.

In 2014,  Amnesty International reported that a secret Philippine prison was discovered

where police systematically tortured inmates, even making games out of it.

Many Filipino residents voted for Duterte because of he promised to take a tough stance

And since taking office, a whopping 91% of residents surveyed, still support their new

But many around the world do not see extrajudicial murder as a solution.

Instead, opponents push for drug rehabilitation programs, an eradication of Chinese criminal

syndicates, and more accountable policing.

But with Duterte in power for the next six years, there is little chance