No amount of criticisms from the international community would discourage the Philippine National Police (PNP) in pursuing its anti-illegal drugs campaign, a top police official said on Monday.

PNP chief Gen. Camilo Pancratius Cascolan insisted that the drug war that has been led by the police since the Duterte administration has been consistent on its own Police Operational Procedures.

“Let me state for the record that Human Rights has never gotten in the way of the PNP campaign against illegal drugs and vice-versa, precisely because police anti-illegal drugs operations are consistent with Police Operational Procedures or rules of engagement that are founded on the fundamental principle to respect, protect and fulfill human rights; and to uphold the rule of law,” said Cascolan.

He was reacting to the statement of the United Nations Commissioner on Human Rights who expressed concern over the alleged human rights abuses in the country through the drug war even during the coronavirus pandemic.

Aside from the UN, the European Union also expressed the same sentiment and even threatened to revoke the tariff privileges being extended to the Philippines.

On September 17, the EU lawmakers recommended the revocation of the Philippines’ Generalized Scheme of Preferences Plus status which basically provides the country with tax perks for products being shipped to Europe from the Philippines.

Based on the report, the EU Parliament overwhelmingly voted to adopt the resolution revoking the tariff perks for the Philippines with 626 votes, seven against and 52 abstentions.

The resolution drew concerns among businessmen in the Philippines, with a local labor group saying that the move could result in the joblessness of more than 200,000 Filipinos.

But for Cascolan, there is no turning back for the PNP in the campaign against illegal drugs.

“Despite calls by the UN High Commissioner on Human Rights to turn our back from the anti-drug campaign, we will never lower our guard against a crime that destroys families and the moral fiber of society, and certainly not while we are winning the war,” said Cascolan.

He said the drug war, which claimed thousands of lives that include collateral damage wherein children were killed, resulted in the improvement of peace and order in the country.

Cascolan said the drug war also resulted in the total eradication of locally-manufactured illegal drugs.

“In fact, we have made great strides in the supply reduction strategy against illegal drugs such that, of late, there is no reported local production of shabu in the country and that drug trafficking activities have been significantly checked due to pressure from police operations,” said Cascolan.

“However, the challenge remains in the demand reduction strategy that takes more than law enforcement action, but a holistic approach by the stakeholders from the family, community, church, school, local government and the larger society,” he added.