Philippine President Marcos admits abuses in Duterte’s war on drugs
- At a forum in Washington, Marcos Jnr said the administration of former president Rodrigo Duterte ‘focused very much on enforcement’ in its war on drugs
- Police records show more than 6,000 people were killed during the an anti-crime campaign, but rights groups say death toll could be three times higher
Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jnr said there were “abuses by certain elements in the government” during his predecessor’s campaign against illegal drugs, which left thousands dead.
In a forum at the Centre for Strategic and International Studies in Washington on Thursday, Marcos Jnr said the administration of former president Rodrigo Duterte “focused very much on enforcement” in its war on drugs.
“Because of that, it could be said that there were abuses by certain elements in the government that have caused concerns from many quarters about the human rights situation of the Philippines,” he said.
According to official police records, more than 6,000 people were killed in the war on drugs, which was launched by Duterte after he was elected president in 2016 on an anti-crime campaign.
Human rights groups have alleged that the death toll could be three times higher. Questions have also arisen about whether the suspects were extrajudicially killed by police and whether some of those killed actually had any role in drug sales.
Marcos Jnr said he could not speak about “what [Duterte] had in mind” but noted that illegal drugs remain “the source of many, much criminality” in the Philippines.
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“The syndicates have become wealthier, more influential”, he said. “But instead of going after everyone, we have tried to identify the key areas that we have to attend to so we can see a demolition of activity of drug syndicates”.