QUEZON City, Philippines (October 4) – Several concerns were raised regarding the state of human rights in the Philippines. The United Nations sent its investigators to the Philippines to look into such issues like poverty, education, labor, human trafficking, homelessness and gender equality. The Philippine Drug War – officially named Campaign Plan Double Barrel – was questioned and probed.
Then came the figures. According to the Philippine National Police, 1, 276 “drug personalities” were killed in police operations from July 1 to September 29.
This brought international attention to the Philippines and to its unconventional president.
President Rodrigo Duterte may be the only Philippine president that is not media-friendly. Some, especially the international media, may find his actions and words offensive. He is the only Philippine president to make use of invectives in his speeches.
Our new President asks not to be judged by the words he says but by the values he stands for. Perhaps this nation – like an ailing body – needs to swallow a bitter pill in order to heal.
We should be open to President Duterte’s unorthodox ways. After all, it brings concrete results. Criminality as we know it is now at an all-time low.
Progress has a price and that price is change. A valuable lesson that we can all learn from the Duterte administration is that we should not be afraid to do what needs to be done, without heed or care for what others may think about us.
(written by Errah Crusim, edited by Jay Paul Carlos, additional research by Vince Alvin Villarin)