CHR welcomes Bongbong Marcos’ prevention-based strategy vs illegal drugs

INQUIRER FILE PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines – The Commission on Human Rights (CHR) on Friday welcomed President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s plans to prioritize prevention in the administration’s crackdown on illegal drugs.

CHR executive director Jacqueline Ann de Guia said that the agency will “look forward to a drug campaign that puts respect for human rights as its prime consideration.”

“On several occasions, both during the candidacy and after winning the election, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. affirmed pursuing his own brand of drug campaign focusing on prevention, education on the ill effects of drugs, treatment, and being within the framework of the law and with respect for human rights,” said De Guia.

The CHR also reaffirmed its mandate of improving the country’s human rights climate, emphasizing the need to address the drug problem as a public health issue rather than a purely criminal one.

“We continue to advocate for the implementation of voluntary, community-based drug treatment and harm reduction where people are detained for the sake of claimed drug treatments,” said De Guia.

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