Palace pooh-poohs opposition to drug war

UN special rapporteur Agnes Callamard said the drug war being waged by the administration of President Rodrigo Duterte was reaching a ‘tipping point’ as Filipinos were slowly criticizing the antinarcotics campaign. Recent surveys however show Filipinos showing approval of the government’s antidrug drive. AFP FILE

The government on Saturday dismissed a statement by UN special rapporteur on extrajudicial killings Agnes Callamard that opposition to President Duterte’s war on drugs was rising.

Callamard was quoted as saying recently in Thailand that the more than 7,000 deaths attributed to the crackdown fostered a sense of impunity that could lead to increased lawlessness and violence. She warned that the situation was at a “tipping point” with many Filipinos slowly criticizing the war.

“Her statement that there’s a mounting opposition, it’s a minority voice that favors liberal politics. On the other hand, we’re not saying they’re wrong, we’re saying that yes, we understand where they’re coming from,” presidential spokesperson, Ernesto Abella, said over the government-run Radyo ng Bayan.

He said that based on the situation on the ground, public opinion remains on the side of Mr. Duterte, and that those criticizing the narcotics war were mostly from the outside.

“So in terms of support, where do you expect support? Do you expect support to come from outside or do you expect support from inside?” Abella said.

“Mainly what we hear from outside are criticisms. And I suppose that it’s also their role. But we also have to understand that these critics are also voices of other forces” that have their own agenda, he added.

The President will continue his campaign, but likely change his strategies along the way if he sees fit to do so, he said.

“He is not hard-headed. But he is very persistent in pursuing and making sure that, as he says, the apparatus of drugs is destroyed,” Abella said.

The government recently stopped the antidrug campaign after several cops were implicated in the killing of Korean businessman Jee Ick-joo last year. Jee was killed inside Camp Crame and his remains later flushed down the toilet, but the rogue cops still collected ransom money from his grieving wife.

Abella said the President has been listening to concerns raised about the campaign.

But he has been reacting to some comments rather strongly because he had felt that these were “not really founded on Philippine reality,” Abella said.

“There is a different reality in the Philippines and that is what he insists,” he added.

Abella was apparently referring to Colombia’s former President Cesar Gaviria who had offered him advice on his drug war and warned him not make the same mistakes he did.

Gaviria had cautioned Mr. Duterte on his heavy-handed approach to the drug war, saying that “throwing more soldiers and police at the drug users is not just a waste of money but can actually make the problem worse.”

Mr. Duterte subsequently branded Gaviria an “idiot.”

Mr. Duterte had stressed that the Philippines was different from Colombia because the police here were  battling shabu. Colombia dealt with cocaine and heroin, and only managed to address the problem because of money from the United States./rga