PNP bracing for more casualties in drug war
The Philippine National Police (PNP) is bracing for more casualties in the government’s war on illegal drugs as it shifts its focus on large-scale drug suppliers in the country.
While the campaign against street-level pushers and users will continue, PNP spokesman Col. Bernard Banac yesterday said their repackaged strategy is set on running after the leaders of drug rings, including those who have been flooding the streets with narcotics.
The shift, which is expected to start this July, is necessary as police officials have noticed that illegal drugs are still being sold on the streets despite an intensified campaign.
“Nakikita natin na kapag doon natin i-focus ang atensyon ay talagang mapipigilan na natin ’yung distribution ng droga sa ibaba (We’re seeing that if we focus our attention on bigtime suppliers, we can halt the distribution of drugs down there),” Banac said in an interview over radio station dzBB.
The PNP Drug Enforcement Group (DEG) will spearhead the campaign and is expected to get additional support to improve its operational and intelligence capabilities.
While they want to avoid casualties as much as possible, Banac said more deaths are expected for as long as there are drug suspects who will choose violence “because a lot of our fellow Filipinos are stubborn.”
The PNP reported that at least 6,000 suspected drug pushers and users have been killed since President Duterte started his crackdown on illegal drugs in July 2016.
The problem, according to Banac, is that these drug suspects opted to put up a fight than peacefully surrendering to the authorities.
“They don’t want to stop pushing illegal drugs and there are still those who fight back if they are caught in the act and are to be arrested by the police,” he said in Filipino.
The latest police casualty in the government’s drug war is Senior M/Sgt. Conrado Cabigao, who was killed during a shootout with two suspected drug dealers in Rodriguez, Rizal on Saturday.
For Banac, they would prefer that there are no casualties on both sides and that drug suspects are brought in court for trial.
“The PNP doesn’t want to have casualties, especially among our ranks,” he said.
Close attention to human rights
Meanwhile, French Secretary of State Jean-Baptiste Lemoyne highlighted the close attention France pays to human rights during a meeting with Philippine officials on Friday.
Lemoyne met with Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro Locsin Jr. and discussed human rights, the fight against drugs and respect for rule of law.
“I had the opportunity to raise this point during the meeting with Secretary Locsin because human rights are universal and, of course, we understand that the fight against drugs is important, but it must be respecting the rule of law,” Lemoyne told reporters.
“I raised this point because you know, I’m also Minister for European States, and if we want to have further discussion on Free Trade Agreement for example, European Parliament is also very careful, attentive on those topics, so I think it was important to raise a point,” he added.
On Twitter last week, Locsin said extrajudicial killing is not all bad and it just depends on who gets it.
“EJK isn’t all as bad as its cracked up to be. It just depends on who’s getting it. By the way. Are the PNP who abdicated, strangled, cremated and flushed a Korean’s ashes down a PNP toilet & demanded ransom from unwitting widow still breathing? Why?” Locsin said.
Lemoyne visited Manila on Thursday and Friday to co-chair, together with Trade Secretary Ramon Lopez, the Eighth Joint Economic Committee. The work focused on prospects for economic cooperation, notably in the areas of infrastructure, transport, renewable energy and agriculture.
Last week, the United Nations’ human rights chief expressed deep concern over persistent reports of extrajudicial killings in the Philippines and threats received by human rights defenders, journalists and members of the Catholic clergy from senior government officials.
In her opening address at the 41st session of the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) in Geneva, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet said her office is following the situation of human rights in the Philippines very closely.
“The extraordinarily high number of deaths – and persistent reports of extrajudicial killings – in the context of campaigns against drug use continue,” Bachelet said, noting that even the officially confirmed number of 5,425 deaths would be a matter of serious concern for any country.
She welcomed the recent statement by special rapporteurs calling for action by the Council.
UN human rights experts called on the UN to establish an independent investigation into human rights violations in the Philippines, citing a sharp deterioration in the situation across the country, including sustained attacks on people and institutions defending human rights.
In March, Bachelet said Duterte’s war on drugs is not a model for any country.
The rapporteurs have recorded a staggering number of unlawful deaths and police killings in the context of “war on drugs” as well as killings of human rights defenders.
They said very few independent and effective investigations have taken place, independent media and journalists are threatened, the law has been weaponized to undermine press freedom and the independence of the judiciary is undermined.
Independent human rights experts appointed by the UNHRC have raised their concerns with the Philippine government on 33 occasions over the last three years.