Rodrigo Duterte’s War on Drugs

Anna Sutterer Jonah McKeown

Federico Maccioni Tomás Orihuela

1. Booked and confirmed guests. 2. Issue summary. 3. Key points of controversy and contention. 4. Must-read articles. 5. Pre-Interviews. 6. Organization of the show.

1. Booked and confirmed guests

Guest One: John Paolo Bencito Official Job Title: Reporter at the Manila Standard Location: Manila, Philippines. E-mail address: johnpaolo.bencito@gmail.com Twitter: @jpbencito Phone numbers: Skype username: jpbencito

Guest Two: Jayeel Serrano Cornelio Official Job Title: Sociologist and Director of Development Studies Program at Ateneo de Manila University Location: Manila, Philippines E-mail address: jcornelio@ateneo.edu Twitter: @jayeel_cornelio Phone numbers: +63 9392975328 Skype username: jayeel.cornelio

Guest Three: Sanho Tree Official Job Title: director of the Drug Policy Project at the Institute for Policy Studies in D.C. Location: Washington D.C. E-mail address: stree@igc.org Twitter: @SanhoTree Phone numbers: 202/494-8004 (direct line) Skype username: sanho.tree

Guest Four: Phelim Kine Official Job Title: deputy director of the Asian sector of the Human Rights Watch (often writes for NYT, Guardian, etc.) Location: New York E-mail address: kinep@hrw.org Twitter: @PhelimKine Phone numbers: Skype username: phekyne

2. Issue Summary

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte was elected in June 2016 as the first president from the island of Mindanao. He was elected with 39% of the vote and has enjoyed great popularity in the country, with approval ratings around 91% near the start of his presidency, and most polls putting him at around 64% approval now. Duterte has built much of his campaign on a war against drug dealers and drug users in the country, and has been accused of ordering or encouraging hundreds of killings of drug dealers and users since taking office. Human rights groups (such as Senate Justice and Human Rights committee) have documented at least 1,400 killings in Davao (the city where he was mayor) that they allege had been carried out by death squads since 1998, and around 2,400-4,000 killings in the country total, but reliable numbers are hard to come by. Most of those murdered have been drug users, petty criminals and street children (Source: PCIJ). He denies he had a hand in the killings in his native city of Davao, but has repeatedly condoned them. In 2009 he said: "If you are doing an illegal activity in my city, if you are a criminal or part of a syndicate that preys on the innocent people of the city, for as long as I am the mayor, you are a legitimate target of assassination.” Davao is now one of the safest cities in the Philippines, so people seem to think he can do the same for the rest of the country. In Davao he reportedly intimidated and killed some, and the rest he offered jobs, including in the city government. He won the backing of the Davao elite, as improved peace and order allowed their businesses to thrive. He was conciliatory toward Muslim separatists and got the support of NGOs for programs that provided services for the city’s poor. He recently compared himself to Hitler and said he would be happy to slaughter 3 million drug users in the country. Within the last week he also banned smoking in the country.

The Philippine National Police chief, Police General Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa, claims that crime have gone down, indicating that most crime are drug related; to date there have been 11,000 detentions and 670,000 people that have surrendered voluntarily to authorities, according to the Police, and the Dangerous Drugs Board reports a 30% increase in drug related detentions. In 2012, The United Nations World Drug Report said the Philippines has the highest rate of shabu (methamphetamine) use in East Asia. Metro Manila is the region most affected by drugs with 92% of its districts having drug-related cases.

Although opinion polls seem to show Duterte’s approval rating is high, there have been many protests in Manila and elsewhere against Duterte’s harsh tactics. He has also drawn criticism from hundreds of human rights non governmental organizations, the Catholic Church, and world leaders like President Barack Obama.

3. Key points of controversy and contention

● Drugs: Rodrigo Duterte, known as The Punisher, was elected with the promise of fighting against drug dealers, which he touts as the country’s greatest threat. He has been accused of ordering and encouraging hundreds of killings since June, although the exact numbers from the government are difficult to quantify. According to CNN, we are counting 1,167 deaths and 18,064 detentions since Duterte took power. According to Nonoy Espina, Director of National Union of Journalists of the Philippines, the number of deaths are rising over 4,000. Death squads are in charge of the killings, since he doesn’t completely trust the police. Actually, he has offered $38,000 for every corrupt policeman found guilty.

There have also been many surrenders. In fact, more than a million houses were visited, leading to 53,00 dealers surrendered and 662,594 users surrendered; CNN said. Human Rights groups have documented at least 1,400 killings of drug users and dealers in Davao since 1998, the city where he was major. Now, it’s considered to be one of the safest place in the country. Edgar Mobato, who said in a court trial that he’d spent years working for the “Davao Death Squad”, claimed that they killed people in cold blood. There has been other collateral effects. Senator Leila de Lima was removed as head of the Senate Justice and Human Rights committee in September. She had been investigating extrajudicial killings related to Duterte’s anti drug war. Duterte made it clear: "If you are doing an illegal activity in my city, if you are a criminal or part of a syndicate that preys on the innocent people of the city, for as long as I am the mayor, you are a legitimate target of assassination.”

● Foreign policy: This drug policy has created a lot of controversy in the whole world, specially in the United Nations. Of course, they are against the killings of people that consider to be innocent. The Filipino president threatened to kill whoever stepped in his way during this fight and also suggested pulling the Philippines out of the UN. Besides, he has threatened to end military exercises with them, but later recanted. He’s had strong words for Obama, the Pope, archbishops in his own country… He resents the U.S. for not selling him weapons, and for the concern over his extra-judicial drug war killings. That’s why Duterte is trying to have good relations with China and Russia: weapons. He recently announced that upcoming military exercises with the US and the Philippines would be the last ones; his foreign minister said his remarks had been taken out of context. The Philippines has not formally committed to joining the United States in patrols beyond its territorial waters in the South China Sea. It has carried out at least two patrols with the United States this year, in April and June, that remained within 12

nautical miles of the Philippine coast. His behavior makes unlikely that creditors and investors put their money in the Philippines, so the peso is at his lowest point in the last seven years.

West Philippine Sea issue: Both Vietnam and the Philippines have experienced aggression from China which is claiming 90% of the sea as its exclusive economic zone. Thus, fishermen of both countries have been harassed by Chinese vessels. … This is why “maritime cooperation” could include discussions on defense and national security.

● Poverty: Duterte’s administration is working on putting meals on kid’s tables. The main

aim is to enable them to get food three times per day, as well as scholarships for education. The Philippines still has very high rates of poverty.

● Lack of infrastructures: Lack in the infrastructure process that is meant to address the transportation problem in the country. The administration is also taking care of the metro, and in 6 years they intend to build new resources in order to get to other parts of the country. It’s not only focused in Metro Manila, it’s also focused in other parts of the country, like South Philippines.

● Peace: Philippines is having trouble with peace within their boundaries, with Islamic separatist groups, some with connection to ISIS, rising up in the country. This has led lead to kidnappings, bombing… Duterte is gaining ground in talks with Communist leaders, but the issues with Islamic insurgents is not being talked about in the official discourse.

4. Must-read articles

1. The Making of Rodrigo Duterte (September 21st, 2016) http://pcij.org/uncategorized/the-making-of-rodrigo-duterte/

The piece illustrates the rise of Rodrigo Duterte from vice-mayor of Davao to president of the Philippines. After Marcos’ regime, Aquino had to deal with a very chaotic situation, especially in Davao, heaven for communist rebels, Islamic extremists and drug dealers. The reporter explains that, already then, Duterte didn’t refuse his strategies to fight crime, and he was said to have pushed a drug dealer out of a helicopter. Death Squads in Davao, between 1998 and 2015, allegedly killed over 1,400 criminals and street children, and a man called Edgar Matobato, a former member of these groups, recently testified against the president: he claimed that he chopped up the corpses of victims, fed them to crocodiles, or buried them in a quarry, under Duterte’s order. At this moment, Duterte is so appealing to Filipinos because of his war on drugs, vulgar rhetoric and controversial behavior, totally different from “Imperial Manila” politicians. But in foreign policy, despite the accusations against the United States and the International Community, he isn’t taking into account that the country still largely depends on Washington’s aids in the economic and military fields. (179 words)

2. In Duterte’s war on drugs, local residents help draw up hit lists (October 7th, 2016) http://www.reuters.com/article/us-philippines-duterte-hitlists-idUSKCN127049

The piece concerns the role of normal people in the war on drugs conducted by Duterte in the Philippines. According to human rights activists, more than 2,200 victims of this war didn’t appear in the hit lists reported by local officials to police cops. Barangay (district) leaders, known as “captains,” hugely contribute in this process, but deny the victims’ cases were targeted killings. They are elected through corruption, often belong to the same family and manage the everyday life of the community. BADACs, created in 1998, play a main role in this war, by providing the names of the so called “drug personalities,” validated in a second moment by police officials. However, the lists, which are similar to those used by death squads, are thought not to be correct, and include names of people who aren’t drug users. Even if declared as confidential, these lists are made public, and include the names of “surrenders,” people who voluntarily confess their involvement in drug market. The barangay leaders are pushed themselves by the president because of their alleged ties with drug cartels and criminality, and one of those who have decided not to cooperate with the central government, has already been killed. (199 words)

3. Thrilla in Manila (September 27th, 2016)

https://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/philippines/2016-09-27/thrilla-manila The article analyzes the first three months of Duterte’s presidency, putting in evidence the causes of his success and the possible consequences of his controversial behavior. Even though he belongs to a minority party (PDP-Laban), Duterte has been able to gain a supermajority support, which is now around 91%. In the next 3 years he’s going to appoint 11 of 15 judges at the Philippine Supreme Court, with his promises, is enforcing the ties with the military, and in foreign policy, seems interested in restoring the troubled relationship with Beijing rather than enforcing the one with Washington. His success is due to the war on drugs he’s guiding in the entire country, especially in Manila, despite the concerns of human rights activists and the liberal Filipino intelligentsia: it has led to more than 3,000 extrajudicial killings and is expected to last at least nine more months. However, optimistic analysts state that after this phase, he could decide to focus on the construction of rehabilitation centers, and they underline his policies in other important fields: he’s trying to accelerate infrastructure spending so as to solve the problem of traffic congestion, and taking measures against firms violating environmental regulations. (198 words)

4. Before Duterte was the Philippines’s president, he was the “Death Squad mayor” (September 28th, 2016) https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/asia_pacific/before-duterte-was-the-philippines-president-he-was-the-death-squad-mayor/2016/09/28/f1d1ccc4-800b-11e6-ad0e-ab0d12c779b1_story.html

The piece describes Duterte’s controversial present and past, analyzing his conduct when he was Davao’s mayor. At the moment, he’s using his strong popular and legislative support to conduct his war on drugs, and increase his influence on institutions. Because of the investigations she was conducting about the president’s dark past, Senator De Lima, one of his main critics and former chair of the Committee on Justice and Human Rights, has been ousted from her role, and her personal number and address have been nationally broadcast, leading to threats. In Davao, a family government has been established, since Sara Duterte has been elected for her second mandate, and her brother Paolo, as vice-mayor. Under Duterte, the most populous city of the country, previously called “Murder City”, has become one of the Asian safest cities, and people seem justify the means that have led to such change. Duterte himself doesn’t deny his nickname of “Death Squad Mayor”: during his 22 years as mayor, suspected criminals were summarily executed by police or gunned down by plainclothes assassins riding on motorcycles, but only few cases were investigated, and people willing to talk about these evident crimes are now described as “bad guys”. (200 words)

5. Sceptred bile (September 17th, 2016)

http://www.economist.com/news/asia/21707167-new-president-may-undo-economic-gains-recent-years-sceptred-bile

The article focuses on the controversial figure of Duterte, whose statements and policies, scare foreign investors and threat Philippines’ new reputation of South-East Asia’s economic star. During Aquino’s presidency, Philippines economy grew faster than China’s, unemployment fell steadily year by year, the stock market bloomed, and foreign direct investments tripled. Although Duterte has proposed a ten-points plan, with a particular interest in the development of rural areas and tourism, his war on drugs and scandalous declarations are discouraging the American and European Chambers of Commerce to invest in the Philippines. Also local businessmen live in an atmosphere of fear because of police’s impunity: they’re worried to be denounced by the president as transgressors without any evidence, and be forced to sell their companies, just as happened to Mr. Ongpin’s firm. Last but not least, Duterte’s foreign policy decisions represent a change of conduct for the country: he seems willing to restore ties with China, after the Scarborough Shoal dispute, in return for infrastructures in Mindanao. There are optimistic and pessimistic views, but so far, the president is ending up weakening the country. (184 words)

5. Pre-interviews

John Paolo Bencito (interviewed by Tomás Orihuela)

● Opinion on Duterte’s drug policy? ○ According to local police, we have 3,000 deaths already since Duterte took office. It’s not

established if they’re caused by extrajudicial killings. ○ It’s important to note that the president is trying to address these concerns so far. So far

the police is having difficulties in knowing which one is the reliable number. 3,000 is the number that I can give you, since Duterte took office 100 days ago.

● Uniqueness about drug policy?

○ The Filipino police is carrying out a knock and plead strategy. They want drug users to rehabilitate in centers they’re building, so far Duterte has allowed 1.4 billion pesos to be invested in this drug policy.

● Why is he so popular then in the Philippines?

○ His “straight to the heart” approach and addressing the issues that are very important to Filipinos such as poverty, corruption, and others.

○ Duterte speaks the language of the common Filipino. He’s not the usual politician that you can see everyday throwing the beautiful statements. He’s angry about the situation in his country. He won in a plurality system.

● How does his behavior affect Filipino foreign affairs?

○ As we know, the US and the Philippines are good strategic allies. Duterte says if the keep criticising his policies, he’ll cut Filipino ties with the US. His cabinet secretary made clear that it’s not what he meant.

○ There are things that must be fixed, and members of his cabinet have been visiting Washington in order to keep that strong ties.

● Biggest problems in the Philippines?

○ According to Mr Duterte is the war in drugs. There are some other issues that need to be controlled: eradication of poverty, for example. The government has been doing some projects: one of the measures is the administration, and conditioning of food, cash, help for children to go to school, to eat three times a day…

○ Lack in the infrastructure process that is meant to address the transportation problem in the country. The administration is also taking care of the metro, and in 6 years they intend to build new resources in order to get to other parts of the country. It’s not only focused in Metro Manila, it’s also focused in other parts of the country.

○ We are fighting with insurgencies within our boundaries: Communists, Muslim separatists. This leads to kidnappings, bombing… Duterte is gaining ground in talks with

the communist leader (WHO?). Next thing would be Muslims: we have two big groups. Duterte is being successful in bringing these two groups together and negotiating with them as one entity. He’s planning to buy equipment, weapons for the military…

● What could be managed in a different way?

○ His manner of speech is a distraction, the way he tries to deal with the US is an unnecessary thing to do. He has a bigger problem, but if he goes on with that, that distraction can lead Duterte to not achieve what he promised.

Jayeel Cornelio (interviewed by Jonah McKeown) Sociologist of religion, also the director of the development studies program as Ateneo de Manila University. Main focus is religion, but also talks about youth politics and urban studies. Interested in the intersection between religion, development and politics.

● How are Duterte and Trump similar? ○ Superficially, you can compare them, because they both come across as populist

individuals who pander to the emotions of the public. Duterte tends to be difficult to classify politically, because he was a student of the communist party leader, and he calls himself sympathetic to the left. This is why we have peace talks with the communist party of the Philippines going on in Norway.

○ Duterte is “The People’s President;” very authentic, seen by many Filipinos as an outsider who could finally bring the interests of people from Mindanao to the table. Although these caricatures can be very simplistic, people really trust him. A lot of people are willing to dismiss his record because he gets things done. People are very supportive of him in Davao.

● The Philippine Conference of Catholic Bishops has condemned the killings, but recently applauded Duterte on other points. What do you make of this?

○ The Catholic church is simply being cautious at this point with the way they want to respond to Duterte.

○ Many Filipinos do not like when priests dabble in politics. Church members are cognizant of this and they want to be very cautious. This is not unprecedented; in 1972, when Marcos declared martial law, the church supported it. Human rights got bad and the church was eventually forced to respond; tide of opinion went against Marcos. They can’t really be all out against the president, because public opinion would be against the church.

○ BUT, some priests/bishops are actually very supportive of Duterte. They really think that what he’s doing is a welcome development. I’m not sure whether meaningful change has really come.

● What about reports of ISIS in the Philippines? ○ Reliable sociologists in Mindanao tell me that it’s all muddled. Al-qaeda and the Islamist

Abu Sayaff group (ASG) have declared that they want to be affiliated with ISIS. They

want an Islamic state, or course, but it is also an economy for them, almost like a business. I think ISIS and ASG will really want to contest the power of Duterte. This issue is not being talked about. It’s not in the official discourse. Muslims really stick together in the Philippines.

● How is religion playing into politics? ○ The institutional response is fragmented, but I think a better way of putting it is a “wait

and see” attitude. That doesn’t discount the fact that some are speaking out, but they are rare.

○ On the level of the public, I spoke with a research fellow in Davao, and they found 84% of Filipinos support the war on illegal drugs, and that is out of a large majority of Catholics. The popular response is very favorable. However, it is very telling that 71% of respondents said that it is very important for drug suspects to be caught alive.

● Why is there little public outcry? ○ Now when you're a human rights advocate, you can expect people to think you're getting

in the way of progress, or that you're anti-government. This is classic fascism, and unfortunately it is very disappointing that people would dismiss that as collateral damage. People less interested in politics and more in prosperity. They’ve lost a flare for social justice.

○ Senator Manny Pacquiao thinks that the war on illegal drugs is the will of God, and many evangelicals are rallying behind him.

● How can the state justify the things they’ve done? ○ As of late, they've been talking about their successes. The administration is claiming that

90% of the illegal drug supply has been cut- but the demand is probably moving elsewhere. People think they’re safer, but whether that will be the case in the long run may or may not prove true. It’s a battle of propaganda.

Sanho Tree, from Institute for Policy Studies (interviewed by Anna Sutterer)

● General thoughts about Duterte: ○ President Duterte is a Trumpian figure in the sense that nobody took him seriously when

he ran and successfully knocked off more opposition until he won in a huge mandate. He’s also undertaking a Trumpian tantrum in terms of the drug policy.

● How do Duterte’s tactics compare to other leaders from countries we historically hear more about like Colombia?:

○ There is no comparison. Duterte’s war is based on a cultural disposition that all drug users and pushers are terrible people that deserve death. It has a level of bloodlust not reached before, even by Indonesia who used to be the “bad boys” in drug wars in SE Asia.

● What is the nature of the drug problem in the Philippines?: ○ A lot of people are doing it in pill form, which is not that different from Adderall or

Ritalin, it’s a different type of amphetamine. And they’re doing it for energy in long work shifts. If it’s used in pill form it’s much slower release and is less problematic than smoking or injecting, but it’s all been demonized.

● Why does Duterte have popular support?: ○ Drug policy reformers/media/education in the Philippines haven’t spread enough public

health information. ○ There has been years of demonization toward drug users and pushers, so politicians can

easily scapegoat that population as the source of all ills. So many years of this leads to impunity for leaders like Duterte to be harsh.

● What about Thailand looking to decriminalize meth? Is that an option?: ○ Thailand in 2003 was much like the Philippines now. They had bloody drug wars and

filled their prisons. The minister of justice now says they can’t win the war and favors policy reform.

○ By threatening people and driving them underground, it prevents them from being able to access harm reduction services or public health services.

● Any other ways to deal with the drug issue?: ○ Australia and New Zealand and some other more developed countries have safe

consumption rooms with supervised (by doctors and nurses) drug usage. The intention is rehabilitation, safety and harm-reduction.

○ The Philippines is far from these kinds of tactics because of their deep cultural attitudes against drug usage in all forms.

● Are the crime statistics from the government reliable?: ○ Statistics are hotly disputed in terms of how many people with substance abuse problems

there are in the Philippines. President Duterte inflated it up to 3 million, I think the drug agencies said there are, like, half of that maybe.

○ Important to disaggregate what kinds of drugs we are talking about. Some are habit-forming and problematic and may lead to violent behavior and others are quite non-problematic.”

● How does Duterte’s leadership affect the Philippine’s foreign affairs?: ○ He’s been rude to Obama and is decreasing the relationship with the U.S. In place of that

relationship, he’s looking to be allied with China and Russia ○ Threatening that he’ll buy weapons from them if the U.S. doesn’t sell any. The economy

is tanking because foreign investors don’t like his instability. ● Will Duterte keep his popularity for long?:

○ No. It’s already fallen a good amount (polled 91% toward beginning of presidency and now around 64%).

Phelim Kine: (interviewed by Federico Maccioni) Deputy Director of Asia Division for Human Rights Watch. He has worked as a journalist for more than a decade in China, Indonesia, Cambodia, and Taiwan prior to joining H.R.W. nine years ago. He has written extensively on human rights issues including military impunity, corruption, and his pieces have appeared in media including the New York Times , Asian Wall Street Journal , The Guardian , etc.

● What’s currently happening in the Philippines?

○ In the past three months, we have had more than 2,000 Filipino killings. The Police say that these people were killed because they fought back, but the government refuses to allow any type of investigation into the circumstances of these deaths.

○ Police have been given a license to kill by Duterte, who has promised them not to be subject to any type of reprisals for their work. Duterte’s rhetoric: a violent, unlawful approach to conquer crime control, and even worse, he has promised that more as to come.

● Is this the reiteration of what happened in Davao when he was the mayor? ○ During the 22 years Duterte was mayor in Davao City, Human Rights Watch

documented the existence of a vicious Death Squad that was operated by elements of his police and his municipal government. No one has ever found any direct evidence implicating him, but he was an enthusiastic cheerleader for those killings, he would go on the radio and read names of suspected criminals, and more than often those people would end up dead.

● Why is Duterte so popular? ○ Duterte was elected with a plurality of the votes, with 38% of them ○ President Duterte has tapped into a very broadly felt sentiment among many

Filipinos that the justice system, has failed and is broken ○ Wide dissatisfaction among many Filipinos about the status quo, and the

aggressive rhetoric of Duterte, in this sense, appeals to some elements of the population.

● Is there any form of opposition to the president? ○ Anyone who stands up to Duterte, risks very severe reprisals: only one

lawmaker has been enough courageous to ask an investigation for his crimes, but her efforts to investigate these killings have subjected her to harassments and intimidations, and she has lost her position.

○ In the past, he has said explicitly that his style of governance is the creation of fear, he rules by fear.

● Are Duterte’s threats likely to be effective even outside Philippines’ internal political context?

○ For decades, his trademark has been mastering a very violent rhetoric, which he uses as a smokescreen to avoid having to engage on issues of importance.

○ He is a master of deflecting tension from crucial issues with his unpleasant statements, often with profanity: he has cursed the Pope, the President of the United States, senior UN personnel, and he has joked about raping an Australian

nun. He says things that are calculated, designed to avoid having to address real issues.

● Duterte’s policies credibility, and other models in the same regional context. ○ Duterte has created this so called “drug emergency” from thin air: the statistics for

drug use in the Philippines, are similar to what you see in terms of drug use in the UK. There is no evidence of what he calls “narco-state drug emergency” in the country, that is absolutely baseless and fictitious.

○ 2,000 killings have been committed, but we don’t know who these people were, and they never got to see a lawyer. For the police they were “bad people” and some identified gunmen killed these persons, wrapped their bodies in packing tape and left in the street corner with a sign saying I am a Pusher .

○ Every country in the world has problems with criminality and illegal drugs, and dealing with them is a complex problem that requires complex multiple solutions

● Possibility of concrete reaction of International Community. ○ Both the U.S. and the E. U. provide substantive financial assistance to the security

forces of the Philippines, particularly the Police. What is needed now is for the U.S. and the E.U. to make clear to Duterte that unless they immediately stop this policy of mass killing as a form of crime control, they will suspend all financial assistance.

● Country’s situation in the near future. ○ If the killings continue at this same pace that, by the end of the year,

approximately 6,000 Filipinos will have been killed. ○ This will have severely dangerous implications for security and safety in the

Philippines.

6. Organization of the show Guest 1: John Paolo Bencito, reporter at Manila Standard Possible Questions

● What was Duterte’s election story? ● Tell us about these “extra-judicial” killings by drug war squads. Are they directly commanded by

Duterte? What are the death tolls? How reliable are the numbers? ● How has the Filipino public responded to Duterte’s first few months in office? ● What underlying issues are present in the Philippines that Duterte’s drug focus may be

overshadowing? Guest 2 (panel): Jayeel Cornelio Possible Questions

● From a sociological perspective, where are Duterte’s ideals and policies coming from? ● Why has Duterte remained so popular? Can we draw any parallels between Duterte and Trump? ● What is the role of the Catholic Church as a political entity in the Philippines as it relates to the

war on drugs? ● How else has religion played into politics in the Philippines, since the overwhelming majority of

Filipinos are religious? ● How are Islamic extremist groups affecting politics in the Philippines and why is this issue being

overlooked by Duterte’s government? There have even been reports of ISIS in the Philippines. Guest 3 (panel): Sanho Tree, director of the Drug Policy Project with the Institute for Policy Studies in Washington, D.C. Possible Questions

● What is the nature of the drug problem in the Philippines? How is it similar or different to drug problems in other countries?

● What have you found, in your studies of international drug wars and policies, to be the most effective way to combat drug usage? What would it take for the Philippines to turn to one of these?

● What underlying issues are present in the Philippines that Duterte’s drug focus may be overshadowing?

● How has Duterte’s drug war affected his foreign relations? Guest 4 (panel) : Phelim Kine, deputy director of the Asian sector of the Human Rights Watch (often writes for NYT, Guardian, etc.) Possible Questions

● Is this nationwide war on drugs the reiteration of what happened in Davao when he was the mayor of the city?

● Is there any form of effective opposition to the president? Are there prominent figures opposing to his government?

● What are the alternative solutions to the drug problem? Is this war on drugs to be considered the biggest national problem of the Philippines?

● Who are the people hit by this internal drug conflict? ● Is his bombastic rhetoric only a way to achieve popular support? Has it proved effective? ● How can the International Community respond to Duterte’s violations of human rights? ● What do we have to expect from Duterte, in terms of internal policies, in the next few months?