(FILE) Agents of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) in Region 3 inspect the seized party drugs from a 29-year-old suspect in Baliwag town, Bulacan province. (Photo courtesy of PDEA)
MANILA, Philippines — The total number of drug suspects killed in the government’s war against illegal drugs has reached 6,221 as of November 30, 2021, the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) reported on Monday.
PDEA also reported through its Real Numbers PH, a regular update on drug war statistics, 319,929 suspects were arrested in a total of 221,657 drug war operations from July 1 or since President Rodrigo Duterte took office.
Of the number of arrested individuals, 13,996 are considered high-value targets, which involves the following:
349 foreign nationals
394 elected officials
126 uniformed personnel
511 government employees
3,830 targets listed
796 drug group leaders and members
75 armed group members
1,449 drug den maintainers
284 on wanted lists
24 celebrities or licensed professionals
6,158 from high-impact operations
Meanwhile, the number of government employees arrested by PDEA is now at 1,031, consisting of 511 government employees, 126 uniformed personnel, and 394 elected officials.
The majority of the illegal substances confiscated during the operations remain to be crystal meth or shabu, which accounts for 7,336.55 kilograms (kgs), followed by marijuana (3,784.22 kgs), cocaine (510.52 kgs), and ecstasy (12.64 kgs). Other assorted drugs worth 3,390.94 kilograms were also confiscated.
PDEA also reported that 23,686 barangays have been declared cleared from illegal drugs, while 11,730 have not yet been cleared.
Duterte’s war on drugs garnered criticisms not just across the country but all around the world due to its bloody execution.
Many human rights groups claim that the actual number of individuals slain during the drug war can be between 12,000 to 30,000.
A University of the Philippines (UP) study on July 23, even revealed that the drug war had killed an estimated two people each day.
These issues then led the International Criminal Court (ICC) Pre-Trial Chamber to allow the Office of the Prosecutor to do a full-blown investigation into allegations that Duterte committed the crime against humanity of wide-scale murder.
Malacañang and Duterte however have refused to acknowledge the ICC’s jurisdiction over the country, saying several times that they would not cooperate with the probe.
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