Bloodied Democracy: Duterte and the Death of Liberal Reformism in the Philippines

Abstract

Since assuming the presidency, Rodrigo R. Duterte has “stuck to his guns” in carrying out his campaign pledge to launch a violent anti-drug campaign. Duterte's presidency was preceded by six years of political stability and high growth under the relatively liberal and supposedly reformist administration of President Benigno “Noynoy” S. Aquino, III. What did voters find so appealing about Duterte given that drugs and criminality were not a major national concern until he launched his candidacy? Unlike previous populist politicians in the post-Marcos Philippines, Duterte's strongest support did not come from the poorest voters but rather from the elite and the middle class who most feared for their personal security. Although Aquino was widely perceived to be personally honest, his administration had become “systemically disjunctive” and vulnerable to replacement by violent illiberalism because its narrative of “good governance” had been undermined, its strategic allies were weakened, and liberal institutions discredited. Duterte is an illiberal populist who changed the prevailing political order into an illiberal one through a new law-and-order governing script, new key strategic groups (the communist left and the police), and the quick removal of remaining liberal constraints (particularly in Congress and the Supreme Court). Duterte constructed a strongman political model at the local level before “nationalising” it after his election as president.

Contemporary Asian Drug Policy: Insights and Opportunities for Change

“…The rate of violent and property crimes per 100,000 people had fallen from 327 in 2009 to 198 in 2015 (National Statistics Office, 2011; Philippine Statistics Authority, 2017). Nevertheless, general anxiety over crime has been dwarfed by concerns about government corruption and judicial mismanagement by recent administrations (Thompson, 2016). In one embarrassing high-profile case, a raid of the maximum-security Bilibid Prison in December 2014 found more than a dozen high-level drug traffickers living in "luxury" cells full of contraband, including large amounts of cash, flat-screen TVs, firearms, a Jacuzzi, and methamphetamine (Cupin, 2014;U.S.…”

“…Publicized incidents of corruption and an overall decline in processing alleged offenders added to the perception of government corruption and timidity toward crime (Thompson, 2016). During the 2016 presidential campaign, candidate Duterte pointed to rising drug-related indicators, inflating official prevalence estimates and calling for a crackdown on drugs (Thompson, 2016). On the campaign trail, Duterte pointed to successful crime reductions during his long tenure as mayor of Davao.…”

“…During the election, he promised to implement similar strong-armed tactics across the Philippines, including mass executions. 17 His law and order rhetoric resonated with voters who were tired of corruption and apathetic toward traditional parties and political powerbrokers (Thompson, 2016).…”

Asserting disadvantaged communities’ deliberative agency in a media-saturated society

“…In 2016, one of Asia’s oldest and most vibrant democracy became part of the global wave of populism when they elected a man who promised ‘to kill all drug addicts’ as cornerstone of his campaign (see Thompson 2016 ; Reyes 2016 ; Kine 2017 ). In the first three years of President Duterte’s rule, human rights groups estimate over 27,000 drug-related deaths, whether in police operations or vigilante killings.…”

Screening for the Severity of Illicit Drug Use among the “Tokhang” Responders in the Philippines: Basis for Community-Based Drug Rehabilitation Program

“…The literature explains that there is widespread abuse of a substance [2]. drug users across the country was found to be approximately 3.4 million [3]. This drug issue persists regardless of the substantial punishments, including death sentence, law enforcements on the sale and utilization of prohibited drugs.…”