UNDER THE MICROSCOPE
What a week it had been. The Duterte saga has captivated the attention, not just of Filipinos, but of the world as well. The arrest of the former Philippine president for crimes against humanity was on international news networks, which didn’t do any good for the image of the Philippines, considering the undistinguished and unsavory company he will keep in Scheveningen, once convicted.
The event brings back a flood of memories dating back to 2016. During the election campaign, we saw how Rodrigo Duterte, a city mayor of Davao, rose in popularity among voters based on his brags about Davao being the “best’ city in the country, amplified by DDS (Diehard Duterte Supporters) on social media. It was based on his track record of cleansing Davao of drug addicts and pushers. He had no qualms about bragging about the many such persons killed.
Many Filipinos responded to such claims with enthusiasm, saying our justice system is not working, therefore, the times called for extraordinary measures. The campaign resonated with this sentiment, and I was alarmed by Duterte’s ascendancy in the polls. Even medical professionals, who have sworn an oath to preserve life, were going to vote for him.
There were two colleagues I tried to dissuade from voting for Duterte to no avail. One said he was tired of traditional politicians who promised everything but delivered nothing. “Change is coming” was the Duterte battle cry. Another was awestruck when she meet Duterte during one of his medical checkups and was entertained lavishly when her group visited Davao, even riding in a helicopter, presumably courtesy of the cult leader self-styled the "son of god."
I told them to expect a massive bloodbath with bodies floating in Manila Bay if Duterte won. But they voted for him anyway. Months later, it was apparent Duterte meant everything he said. Police reports showed the rising numbers of alleged drug users or peddlers killed.
For my colleagues who voted for him, there was only regret and remorse at how they had voted. Certainly, there were many who rued their ill-fated decisions that election day.
There were well-documented stories of the victims of Duterte’s drug war, thanks to the brave reporters and photographers, self-styled “Night Crawlers,” who, night after dreadful night, dared to photograph and interview relatives and friends of the dead.
One particular image of a woman, Jennelyn Olaires, cradling her fallen husband Michael Siaron, a pedicab driver, in her arms, evoked the image of Michelangelo’s sculpture “Pieta.” It was a front-page photo in a national newspaper and was featured in the Aug. 3, 2016 issue of The New York Times front page story, “Body Count Rises as Philippine President Wages War on Drugs.”
Three teenagers, Kian delos Santos, Carl Arnaiz and Reynaldo de Guzman, were killed during the three-day span of Aug. 16-18, 2017. Kian was shot and killed in a dark alley after being dragged away by a police officer, which was documented by CCTV footage. Arnaiz and de Guzman were abducted from their homes in Cainta, Rizal and found dead, the former shot and the latter stabbed 30 times and dumped in a creek in Nueva Ecija. The killings sparked protests and four implicated officers were convicted of murder, one of the very few instances of accountability in this drug war.
Other children were also killed during the drug war a.k.a. Oplan Tokhang. Angelito Soriano, 15, and Sonny Espinosa, 16, were innocent, their mothers said, but nonetheless were victims of extrajudicial killings (EJK).
These are but a few of those who were at least named and publicized by the press, out of the more than 6,000 people officially acknowledged by the police as drug war casualties but human rights groups contend there are more than 30,000 victims, some of whom are unaccounted for.
Forensic pathologist Raquel Fortun conducted post-mortems on 46 EJK victims whose death certificates stated natural causes as cause of death. However, 24 bodies showed bullet holes, mainly in their skulls, while others exhibited signs of blunt force trauma. In some cases, bullets were still retrieved even after supposed “autopsies.”
After news of Duterte’s extradition to the Hague spread, the families, friends and sympathizers of the EJK victims came together, partly to celebrate, and also to commemorate their lost beloved. But there’s a long way to go toward justice and reparations. This is just the start. It will be easy for us to forget after a while about these numerous persons whose lives were cut short violently sans due process.
Unlike them, Rody Duterte will go through the judicial process in the Hague starting Sept. 23, something he denied these thousands of Filipinos whose spirits are crying for justice.
Let it begin, so the healing can start.