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    I was over there recently, the guy is a murderous anti-American dictator in the making.

    Duterte to pardon cops in drug killings
    By Christina Mendez (The Philippine Star) | Updated July 19, 2016 - 12:00am
    http://www.philstar.com/headlines/20...-drug-killings
    More than 1,000 residents queue up in a gymnasium after heeding a call from Tanauan city government to undergo processing allegedly for being drug-users Monday, July 18, 2016 at Tanauan city, Batangas province, south of Manila, Philippines. Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte said he plans to ask Chinese officials why some Chinese citizens who visit his country are involved in illegal drugs. The crime-fighting President, who has vowed to end crimes within six months of taking office on June 30, also said that he will not hesitate to grant pre-signed presidential pardons to law enforcers accused by human rights advocates of abusing their authority in cracking down on narcotics, as long as the soldiers and police involved tell the truth and do not fabricate evidence. AP Photo/Bullit Marquez

    MANILA, Philippines - Law enforcers who may be convicted of criminal offenses in the discharge of their anti-drug related duties are assured of presidential pardon.

    “(The) President can grant pardon, conditional or absolute; or grant amnesty with the concurrence of Congress. Gagamitin ko ’yan. Maniwala kayo (I’ll use it, believe me),” Duterte said at a fellowship dinner with his batchmates at the San Beda College of Law Sunday.

    He said such assurance would encourage policemen to perform their tasks without having to worry about getting prosecuted for killing suspected drug traffickers and pushers.

    Human rights groups have expressed alarm over the spate of killings of suspected drug peddlers in what authorities called anti-drug operations. Bodies of alleged drug dealers have been turning up across the country, especially in Metro Manila, in the past weeks – or from the time Duterte’s election victory was certain.

    The Chief Executive, who did not mince words about his readiness to kill drug pushers and hardened criminals, said he is prepared to pardon 10 to 15 policemen convicted for criminal offense in the performance of their duties.

    Duterte, who was a provincial prosecutor before he became a politician, said he would produce “pre-signed” copies of pardon papers so they could readily be made available if needed. An individual granted absolute pardon regains his civil rights in full, he said.

    He said critics of his tough approach to fighting the drug menace should realize that if pushed against the wall, he would not hesitate to use his power to pardon policemen involved in the war against drugs. He said he would also grant pardon to himself after his term.

    “After I leave Malacañang, I will have this signed: Pardon is hereby granted to Rodrigo Duterte. Signed Rodrigo Duterte,” he said, adding he cannot even be made to serve time in prison because of his age.

    Duterte reiterated that he has long asked drug lords and suspects to stop their illegal activities or face the consequences. He stressed it is his duty to protect the nation from the ill effects of drugs.

    Amid calls for him to heed due process, Duterte said the individuals he had publicly shamed can always go to the courts and seek redress.

    “Why will I give you (due) process? I’m the President, hindi ako nagpo-proseso. I just name you publicly because it is my sworn duty to protect the nation and tell you what the problem is and who are the people behind it,” he said.

    Duterte reiterated he is prepared to “stake the presidency, the honor that goes with it and my life.”

    “Hindi ako aatras dito. Hindi ako matatakot n’yang mga human rights (I will not back down. I’m not afraid of human rights),” he said. “I will not allow the country to be thrown to the dogs. I will not allow my country to be destroyed.”

    As if taking a cue from the President, incoming speaker Pantaleon Alvarez cautioned his colleagues against pushing for an inquiry into the spate of drug-related killings.

    He said lawmakers should attend to their task of lawmaking instead of launching investigations.

    He said he does not see that an inquiry would produce any positive result in terms of remedial legislation being recommended.

    “For if in the course of an investigation, the evidence should point to extrajudicial killing – that’s already illegal. So, what new law may be passed in relation to that?” he asked.

    At most, Alvarez said lawmakers could only recommend the filing of charges before the appropriate government entities like the Department of Justice (DOJ), which would have to determine probable cause.

    “Congress will be better off leaving these matters to the DOJ and attending to important priority measures like the 2017 national budget,” he said.

    He warned his colleagues that they might be suspected of protecting drug lords if they inquire into drug-relating killings or slow down the Duterte administration’s anti-illegal drugs drive.

    “I don’t want any insinuation that the drug lords are using members of Congress to investigate the police so the latter would go slow on their campaign against illegal drugs,” he said.
    Peter Lim to NBI

    After being confronted by Duterte himself for his alleged drug links, Cebu-based businessman Peter Lim has been summoned by the National Bureau of Investigation.

    NBI director Dante Gierran revealed this yesterday after a meeting at the DOJ with Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II.

    In an ambush interview, the NBI chief revealed to reporters that Lim was actually set to appear at their headquarters in Manila yesterday but failed to do so because he was not feeling well. Gierran said Lim is expected to appear before the NBI probably this week.

    In a separate interview, Aguirre said the NBI’s parallel probe on Lim stemmed from the businessman’s meeting with President Duterte, who recently announced that a certain “Peter Lim” was among the biggest illegal drug operators in the country.

    He said the bureau has been specifically tasked to “verify” if the businessman and the person tagged as head of the drug triad in the country – and who is being protected by the so-called “narco-generals” – are one and the same person.

    “Since Peter Lim came forward to talk to the President and clear himself, then the order there is really for Peter Lim – together with the agencies – to prove that he has nothing to do with drugs. But if there is involvement, then the police agencies and the NBI will file the necessary case against Peter Lim for preliminary investigation,” he explained.

    “The police agencies and the NBI are doing what needs to be done – to establish identity, to establish culpability. If evidence for culpability is established, then we are going to investigate after they file the case before the DOJ,” Aguirre said.

    The DOJ chief revealed that Duterte has tapped him “to use all the resources of the department to go after drug lords, and file cases of graft and corruption and heinous crimes.”

    Asked if he would issue an immigration lookout bulletin order against the businessman to monitor his possible flight, Aguirre said there is a need first for “preliminary findings on his alleged involvement in drugs.”

    “As of now, we have not received any negative finding yet,” he clarified. Aguirre also pointed out that the name Peter Lim, as shown by Bureau of Immigration records, is so common that there are 4,000 people in the country with the same name.

    Aside from Lim, Duterte has named two other drug traffickers in the country, Peter Co and Herbert Colangco, both serving sentence at the New Bilibid Prison (NBP).

    In their meeting last Friday night at the regional office of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) in Davao City, the President threatened to kill Lim if it would be proven that he is among the country’s top drug lords.

    Lim told Duterte, whom he supported in the presidential election, that he had nothing to do with illegal drugs.
    Unfazed

    Sen. Leila de Lima, for her part, said she is unfazed by the vicious attacks against her in social media that she believes were triggered by her push to have the Senate investigate the rising incidents of summary executions of drug suspects.

    The senator described the posts on the Internet as the “black or dark side of social media.”

    “And I’m practically defenseless against these rabid attacks. My only defense is a clear conscience and my fidelity to the Constitution and the law,” De Lima said in a text message.

    “But if they think I will be cowed or intimidated, they’re grossly mistaken,” she said.

    Various videos of her have gone viral in social media sites, including a blurry one purportedly of her in a compromising position.

    De Lima, a former justice secretary and chairperson of the Commission on Human Rights, said she does not intend to waste time and dignify the posts by finding out who are behind them.

    “I’m just leaving those up to God,” she said.

    De Lima earlier filed a resolution calling for an investigation into the rising incidents of unexplained killings of suspected criminals but was told that it would have to be discussed in a caucus before the measure could be acted upon by the Senate leadership.

    Her resolution met stiff opposition from Sens. Panfilo Lacson and Vicente Sotto III, who both said such an inquiry would be premature.

    Lacson said there are complaints that would warrant a Senate probe, which could just be used as a fishing expedition. – With Paolo Romero, Evelyn Macairan, Edu Punay, Jess Diaz
    To sit down with these men and deal with them as the representatives of an enlightened and civilized people is to deride ones own dignity and to invite the disaster of their treachery - General Matthew Ridgway

  • #2
    Originally posted by troung View Post
    I was over there recently, the guy is a murderous anti-American dictator in the making.
    I didnt think being anti-American would bother you. The article doesn't even mention America. Furthermore, this guy is basically seen as unstable regardless, why the post?
    "We are all special cases." - Camus

    Comment


    • #3
      I didnt think being anti-American would bother you. The article doesn't even mention America. Furthermore, this guy is basically seen as unstable regardless, why the post?
      Need my rolleyes icon...


      Duterte says Abus not criminals, blames US for Mideast violence
      SHARES: 1384
      VIEW COMMENTS
      By: Allan Nawal
      @inquirerdotnet
      Inquirer Mindanao
      02:57 AM July 9th, 2016
      https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=...27521224,d.eWE

      DAVAO CITY, Philippines—President Rodrigo Duterte on Friday balked at calling the Abu Sayyaf criminals, even as he blamed US intervention for the bloody conflicts in Iraq and other Middle Eastern countries.

      READ: Duterte: Abu Sayyaf are not criminals

      “That’s why I am not including Abu Sayyaf [activities] in criminality. You’ve never heard me say (they are) criminal(s). It is a different setup there because these are the guys who were driven to desperation,” he said in a speech during the Hari Raya Eid al-Fitr celebration at SMX convention center here.

      Duterte said he knew the situation “from Nur [Misurari] to the ARMM (Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao).”

      “There is no sufficient semblance of governance and that is why they are pushed to the wall,” he said, adding: “Then they became radicalized.”

      The celebration was attended by such prominent Moro leaders as Ghadzali Jaafar of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF).

      The President earlier warned the Abu Sayyaf to stop a wave of ransom kidnappings, and said he would eventually confront the militants.

      Two Canadians were successively beheaded by the militants in Sulu after ransom deadlines lapsed.

      A Norwegian, a Dutch bird watcher and a group of seven newly kidnapped Indonesian tugboat crewmen remain in Abu Sayyaf custody.

      The United States and the Philippines have blacklisted the Abu Sayyaf as a terrorist organization for bombings, kidnappings for ransom and beheadings.

      In his speech, Mr. Duterte also suggested that US policy was to blame for terrorist attacks on its soil, saying, “It is not that the Middle East is exporting terrorism to America, America imported terrorism.”

      He said the US-led invasion in Iraq, which was backed by Britain, led to Saddam Hussein’s downfall but caused the oil-rich nation to descend into bloody strife, adding that America’s action had no legal basis.

      Mr. Duterte earlier said he would chart a foreign policy not dependent on the United States.

      “They destroyed the Middle East,” he said as he faulted foreign intervention in the Middle East for the worsening situation there.

      Mr. Duterte said that before the US-led coalition invaded Iraq, Saddam Hussein was in control and the situation there was much better than today.

      “Look at Iraq now,” he said.

      The President also said violence worsened in Libya when Moammar Ghadafi was ousted as president. He said foreign intervention continued to worsen the Middle East situation, citing Syria’s case as another example.

      He said the situation that gave rise to radicalism there was different, though the people there were against foreign intervention.

      In the Philippines, he said the players were all Filipinos and “we are all brothers.”

      Mr. Duterte said he was talking to the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) and the MILF in the hope of ending the decades-old conflict.

      He said he thought of federalism as the effective way to resolve the Mindanao problem because it would give everyone the same opportunity.

      What the MILF gets, he said, will also be the same thing that the MNLF gets. With reports from AP/TVJ
      Foundation scholar a victim of Duterte's war on drugs?
      ABS-CBN News

      Posted at Jul 20 2016 04:42 PM
      http://news.abs-cbn.com/focus/07/20/...s-war-on-drugs
      MANILA – Did cops shoot dead an innocent foundation scholar and his cousin in their sleep during an anti-illegal drug operation in Manila?

      This was the question raised by Manila-based non-government organization Kaibigan Foundation which lamented the death of one its beneficiaries, 20-year-old Jefferson Bunuan.

      In a Facebook post that is starting to get viral, Kaibigan Foundation raised alarm over what it believes was the extrajudicial killing of Bunuan and two others.

      The foundation said the police were looking for a suspected drug dealer named Jomar ''Totong'' Manaois, who apparently went inside the house where Jefferson and his cousin Mark Anthony were supposedly sleeping.

      When policemen caught sight of Manaois, they fired shots that resulted in the deaths of Manaois and the Bunuans. The police claim they fired shots because the three attempted to shoot them.

      Police said they also found drug paraphernalia inside the house.

      But the foundation is denying the police's claim.

      ''Jeff and Mark were sleeping in Totong’s house that time. It was because there was no space in their house since Jeff’s sister just gave birth,'' the foundation said.

      The foundation said Jefferson's sister, Lovely, denied the police's claim that the three were armed.

      ''According to Lovely, she talked to the three girls who were inside the house before the incident occurred. She was told that Jeff and Mark were in fact sleeping at that very moment. Supt. Domingo also said that there was a gunfight, but the three girls said that they heard Totong (being the only one awake that time) surrendered and told the policemen not to implicate his two friends,'' the foundation said.

      ''The three girls also told Lovely that before the said buy-bust operation, the policemen ordered them to get out of the house because they will conduct an investigation. The girls followed their orders while Totong remained inside and the other two victims were still sleeping. Policemen immediately entered the house and in just a few seconds, they heard Totong surrendering, followed by 7 gunshots."

      'POLITE, SOFT-SPOKEN'

      The foundation doubted allegations that Jefferson was a ''runner'' of illegal drugs, saying the the latter had been devoted to his studies and in fact wanted to become a policeman.

      ''Jefferson is a sponsored child of the foundation for 11 years. As described by Kaibigan staff, Jefferson is polite, soft-spoken, and has shown determination to finish his studies despite experiencing life difficulties. He was in fact a graduate of welding course last year and continued his studies in criminology,'' the foundation said.

      ''This is the reason why Kaibigan was so shocked upon hearing the news that he, along with other two suspected drug pusher, was killed in allegedly buy-bust operation in Sta. Ana, Manila."

      The foundation also raised doubts that the three indeed tried to fight the police.

      "The... position of Totong signifies that he probably fell down backwards when he was shot from his surrendering position. This is all contradicting to the statements of the policemen that the group initiated the gunfight and a buy-bust operation was happening," the foundation said.

      President Rodrigo Duterte won the presidential election on a vow to end the illegal drug menace in Philippine society.

      ''It would be bloody,'' Duterte said of his presidency months before he won the election.

      And indeed it has been bloody.

      Based on ABS-CBN Investigate and Research Group's monitoring of national and local news reports, and Philippine National Police (PNP) Regional Office press releases, there have been 505 deaths from May 10 to July 20.

      Several administration critics and human rights advocates have called on Duterte to stop the rise of killings during police operations.

      Duterte's hard talk on illegal drugs and crime, however, seemed to have also emboldened operatives, vigilantes and other criminals.

      Based on ABS-CBN data, 122 of the 505 people killed were silenced by unidentified gunmen, while another 44 were considered victims of summary executions.
      Last edited by troung; 21 Jul 16,, 03:20.
      To sit down with these men and deal with them as the representatives of an enlightened and civilized people is to deride ones own dignity and to invite the disaster of their treachery - General Matthew Ridgway

      Comment


      • #4
        Man in the Middle: Rodrigo Duterte Gets a Taste of China’s Heavy Hand
        Untested Philippines tough guy finds himself at the heart of a U.S.-China contest
        Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has landed at the heart of a regional tug-of-war between Washington and Beijing over the South China Sea. ENLARGE
        Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has landed at the heart of a regional tug-of-war between Washington and Beijing over the South China Sea. Photo: Associated Press
        By Andrew Browne
        July 19, 2016 2:25 a.m. ET
        47 COMMENTS

        DAVAO CITY, Philippines— Rodrigo Duterte, the newly elected Philippine president, is used to being treated with the utmost respect.

        In his previous job, as mayor of this once lawless southern city, his war on drug dealers left a trail of bullet-riddled corpses, targets of police operations as well as vigilante death squads. He roared through the streets on a motorcycle toting a high-caliber rifle.

        But on the afternoon of July 12, Mr. Duterte was irritated, according to one of his closest aides. He felt China was toying with him.

        A cabinet meeting had just received word live from The Hague of Manila’s stunning victory in its legal challenge to China’s claims in the South China Sea, and after noisy clapping and jubilant fist-pumping around the table the first order of business was to issue a public statement. A minister spoke up: He’d had dinner the previous night with the Chinese ambassador.

        That got Mr. Duterte’s attention. “Are you already a spy of the Chinese?” he demanded, in a teasing kind of way, according to the aide who was in the room.

        The minister then relayed a long and detailed list of demands from the envoy about what the Philippine government should say—and not say—when the ruling came out. Anticipating a defeat, China was panicked at the prospect that Manila might issue a gloating statement that would add to its humiliation.

        Mr. Duterte turned serious. What irked him, said the person in the room, was more than just the presumptuousness of the Chinese demands. The president had met with the ambassador himself earlier the same day to offer reassurances. “Didn’t he trust what I told him?” asked Mr. Duterte.

        “Between us guys,” he remarked, “I would have said some of those things, but because the embassy wants me to say them, I won’t.”
        ENLARGE

        The Chinese Embassy in Manila didn’t respond to a request for comment.

        The Philippine leader is getting a quick lesson in Chinese heavy-handedness.

        He is in the middle of an epic contest between China and the U.S. for regional supremacy. In the eyes of many Chinese nationalists, Manila is little more than an American pawn in this bigger game. Does Mr. Duterte, entirely untested on the global stage, have the temperament and political skills to maneuver between the two giants?

        Ahead of the ruling—a surprisingly one-sided judgment that struck down China’s historic claims to the South China Sea and declared that China had violated Manila’s rights by building artificial islands, despoiling reefs and chasing away fishermen in its waters—Mr. Duterte’s critics sensed an eagerness to back down.

        On the campaign trail, he even suggested he could trade maritime sovereignty for a Chinese-built railway line in his impoverished home province of Mindanao.

        And he pledged that he wouldn’t put Philippine troops at risk in a conflict with China they could never win. If necessary, he joked with his usual swagger, he’d ride a jet-ski to the Scarborough Shoal to defend the disputed reef himself.

        Mr. Duterte didn’t pick this legal battle with China; he inherited it from his predecessor, Benigno Aquino III. But now that Manila has scored a victory he wants to use it as leverage in bilateral talks. China, however, has rejected the ruling as a “piece of waste paper” and won’t negotiate with Manila on that basis.

        Washington is watching Mr. Duterte warily. He makes no secret of the fact that he doesn’t trust American security guarantees. Ramon Beleno, a political-science professor at the Ateneo de Davao University, says that while Mr. Aquino believed that America “has our backs,” Mr. Duterte “wants a more independent policy that does not require support from the U.S.”
        Interactive: The South China Sea Dispute

        That doesn’t mean he wants to abandon the American alliance. At the cabinet meeting, the aide said, he declared he would welcome a show of strength by American aircraft carriers. “Let them send their ships,” he told ministers. “You tell them: ‘Come already.’ But I can’t say that openly.”

        Still, says Chito Sta. Romana, president of the Philippine Association for Chinese Studies, “There’s been a shift.” Mr. Duterte “has signaled he wants cooperation with Beijing not confrontation.”

        Mr. Aquino started out with that ambition, too. But after Chinese ships grabbed the Scarborough Shoal in 2012 he did an about-face and started comparing the Chinese regime to Nazi Germany. He launched the legal case the following year.

        Mr. Duterte is a more volatile personality—and he brings his street-fighting sensibilities to international diplomacy. After his presidential election win, he initially refused to see the U.S. ambassador who had criticized him for a shocking joke he made about the rape and murder of an Australian lay minister in 1989. Mr. Duterte later apologized.

        China will expect him to mind his manners. In Beijing, “the Punisher,” as he’s popularly known for his terror tactics against crime, may have met his match.
        http://www.wsj.com/articles/man-in-t...ina-1468909553
        To sit down with these men and deal with them as the representatives of an enlightened and civilized people is to deride ones own dignity and to invite the disaster of their treachery - General Matthew Ridgway

        Comment


        • #5
          I need a "WTF, dude?" icon.

          So you first say he is "anti-American" then post articles about him nearly begging for the USN to come in his FRONT YARD to scare away the Chinese?

          Pick a side.
          "We are all special cases." - Camus

          Comment


          • #6
            So you first say he is "anti-American" then post articles about him nearly begging for the USN to come in his FRONT YARD to scare away the Chinese?
            He has said as much; he blames terrorism on the US, was outraged when there were reports a few years ago about the use of American UAVs to support COIN operations near Davao, blamed the US government for Mindanao bombings, bitched about AFP/US training operations, and has a death squad full of "ex"-NPA hit-men.

            And that's the not liking the US part; not the murdering people and declaring them to be drug dealers, telling Communist rebels to use their own tribunals to root out "drug dealers", threatening the media...
            To sit down with these men and deal with them as the representatives of an enlightened and civilized people is to deride ones own dignity and to invite the disaster of their treachery - General Matthew Ridgway

            Comment


            • #7
              Originally posted by troung View Post
              He has said as much; he blames terrorism on the US, was outraged when there were reports a few years ago about the use of American UAVs to support COIN operations near Davao, blamed the US government for Mindanao bombings, bitched about AFP/US training operations, and has a death squad full of "ex"-NPA hit-men.

              And that's the not liking the US part; not the murdering people and declaring them to be drug dealers, telling Communist rebels to use their own tribunals to root out "drug dealers", threatening the media...
              What he says in public and what he says in private are two different matters. He can spout off all he wants, but that wont change his situation at all. It's popular to be "anti-American" these days. And we take the heat for a lot of shit that has very little to do with us. But, everyone in any position of any importance is cognizant to the fact that the US is a much better friend than enemy, whether in public or private. Which, I would say that we do better in private. Public rhetoric has a very utilitarian purpose, which savvy decision-makers realize.

              Duterte can say whatever he wants. But, in the end, as anyone with any semblance of an intellect would concede, actions speak far louder than words ever will.
              "We are all special cases." - Camus

              Comment


              • #8
                What he says in public and what he says in private are two different matters. He can spout off all he wants, but that wont change his situation at all. It's popular to be "anti-American" these days. And we take the heat for a lot of shit that has very little to do with us. But, everyone in any position of any importance is cognizant to the fact that the US is a much better friend than enemy, whether in public or private. Which, I would say that we do better in private. Public rhetoric has a very utilitarian purpose, which savvy decision-makers realize.
                "He says he hates us, and has said so for years, but totally wants us to protect his EEZ claims until a deal is worked out, so it's cool." It's ok not to like the US, use it as a punching bag, carry no weight, so long as you are willing to be protected by it for the moment. Bismarkian logic there.

                Do you have the numbers for the lottery drawing next week?

                Duterte to military: Help gov’t win war on drugs
                By Christina Mendez (The Philippine Star) | Updated July 23, 2016 - 12:00am
                http://www.philstar.com/headlines/20...-win-war-drugs

                MANILA, Philippines – President Duterte has called on members of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) to help win the war against illegal drugs with their patriotism because “the enemy is within” and “you will have to come in very fast.”

                Duterte assured them of full protection in case drug suspects were killed in the course of the operations.

                As this developed, the president of De La Salle (DLs) Philippines expressed concern over the lack of public outcry against the spate of extrajudicial killings hounding the Duterte administration vis-à-vis the war on illegal drugs.

                Incoming House speaker and Davao del Norte Rep. Pantaleon Alvarez, however, is not keen on launching an investigation into the drug-related killings. But he wants to know why illegal drugs have reportedly gone rampant inside the New Bilibid Prison (NBP) during the watch of then justice secretary and now Sen. Leila de Lima.

                Speaking before Western Mindanao Command troops in Basilan on Thursday, the President said “we have a serious problem” and “we’ll just have to support the government” to win the fight against the drug menace.

                “We are stretched thin. I don’t have a police officer to deploy in every nook and corner (of the country) while shabu, it’s rampaging,” Duterte said.

                The leadership of the Philippine National Police, meanwhile, warned non-performing PNP commanders that they only have three weeks left to show results of their “double barrel” campaign against illegal drugs or they would be replaced.

                Duterte asked the soldiers to be loyal not to him personally but to the country.

                “I won all the elections in my life…I take pride in winning the presidency but I’m fighting a war here. Drugs in Manila and in other places…here in Mindanao, it’s terrorism,” Duterte said.

                “It will need your sacrifice. And mine, too,” he said.

                Being the commander-in-chief, the President can tap the military in the conduct of law enforcement operations by granting them police powers, if he deems it necessary.

                Duterte also said earlier he was fortunate to have been empowered by the executive order of former president Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo raising the level of the drug menace to a national security threat.

                This, he said, would entitle him to use the AFP in the fight against illegal drugs.

                The President took potshots against some personalities, saying “for all you know, they even have a picture” with convicted drug lords, apparently referring to De Lima, but he did not mention any names.

                “That’s how difficult this war is, so you have to love your country. Do it for the love of country, do not do it for me. I do not need it, this is all work. As I said, I am just an employee,” he said.

                “This is all I can say: Do your duty. If you are ordered (to do) an operation against shabu, nagkasabit-sabit kayo (if you get into trouble)… I will be there in the fulfillment of duty or in the performance of your task, mandate, you will have my support, 100 percent. I will not allow you to go to jail, I will be first. That is mine,” Duterte said.

                “If you executed everyone, it’s my order. That is mine. Mine and mine alone. That’s me. But that is our job. So do not be afraid that you might be charged…take solace from my statement: I am there for you,” he said.

                Duterte then went to visit the wounded soldiers before wrapping up his tour of the military camps in Mindanao.

                He added that the soldiers could talk to their commanders should they need some help from him as their commander-in-chief.

                Duterte said he would listen to the soldiers’ woes, which they could course through their respective commanders.
                Say no to extralegal killings

                In a pastoral letter, DLS Philippines president Jose Mari Jimenez called on the Lasallian educational communities to engage civil authorities to ensure that respect for life and the rule of law are always upheld amid the war on illegal drugs.

                He said the lack of a significant public outcry was worrisome because this would not bode well for the vision to have a just and humane society.

                “What these extrajudicial killings demonstrate is how desperate many people have become in the face of the issues of drugs and criminality,” Jimenez said.

                “It is a mistake to believe that we can create a peaceful society by denying those suspected of wrongdoing their fundamental rights to life and to due legal process. The doctrine of the common good rejects any notion that the good of the majority may be attained by violating the fundamental rights of any member of society,” he added.
                Perform, or else…

                At the PNP, Director for Operations Chief Supt. Camilo Pancratius Cascolan warned police officers to double their efforts in fighting the drug menace or they would be sacked.

                “We will be coming out with our evaluation today,” Cascolan said.

                Cascolan issued the warning as the chiefs of police and provincial directors in Cagayan Valley, the Mindoro-Marinduque-Romblon, Palawan (MIMAROPA) region and the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARRM) had been performing dismally in so far as the PNP’s “double barrel” anti-drug campaign was concerned. – With Janvic Mateo, Mike Frialde, Jaime Laude
                Last edited by troung; 23 Jul 16,, 16:11.
                To sit down with these men and deal with them as the representatives of an enlightened and civilized people is to deride ones own dignity and to invite the disaster of their treachery - General Matthew Ridgway

                Comment


                • #9
                  I wonder if Filipinos, knowing all the ineffective Presidents they have had recently, would they boot Marcos out today irregardless of Imelda's shoe collection.

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    I wonder if Filipinos, knowing all the ineffective Presidents they have had recently, would they boot Marcos out today irregardless of Imelda's shoe collection.
                    Despite the progress in growth I'm sure he could do quite well if they ran his reanimated corpse for the top slot with all of his surviving cronies, or their kids, and going back to the good old days in 1984. With the amount of propaganda his apologists throw around his popularity is making a come back despite his economic failures, military failures, political debacles (Sabah), corruption, human rights violations, and the shoe collection. I had one young lady who is in the timber trade explain to me, with a straight face, a couple months ago that Ninoy got offed by his wife.

                    His body is on ice so medical science will hopefully catch up one day.

                    Would violate your one question a day rule to ask how you declare martial law with a few hundred armed Marxist rebels and leave office with over twenty thousand and still call that an era of order and security...
                    Last edited by troung; 23 Jul 16,, 21:01.
                    To sit down with these men and deal with them as the representatives of an enlightened and civilized people is to deride ones own dignity and to invite the disaster of their treachery - General Matthew Ridgway

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      I will say in my 25 years of travel to the Philippines I never heard an average Filipino disparage Marcos. Of course in my early years the average Filipino was dirt poor as there wasn't much middle class. Even this past election my wife was all for Duterte. First his law and order bit and second his anti-establishment Manila government. I told her he will no doubt enforce his view of law and order but as far as Manila corruption I feel once there it tends to corrupt all since it is so damn easy to get away with.

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                      • #12
                        Originally posted by troung View Post
                        "He says he hates us, and has said so for years, but totally wants us to protect his EEZ claims until a deal is worked out, so it's cool." It's ok not to like the US, use it as a punching bag, carry no weight, so long as you are willing to be protected by it for the moment. Bismarkian logic there.

                        Do you have the numbers for the lottery drawing next week?
                        At least it is a consistent logic.
                        "We are all special cases." - Camus

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                        • #13
                          Never gave me the lotto numbers.

                          I will say in my 25 years of travel to the Philippines I never heard an average Filipino disparage Marcos. Of course in my early years the average Filipino was dirt poor as there wasn't much middle class. Even this past election my wife was all for Duterte. First his law and order bit and second his anti-establishment Manila government. I told her he will no doubt enforce his view of law and order but as far as Manila corruption I feel once there it tends to corrupt all since it is so damn easy to get away with.
                          Noticed the same. Outside of the human rights left and people who directly suffered from his abuses I don't hear him criticized for doing much worse than stealing.

                          ==========
                          I wonder how many of the drug pushers/users who are turning themselves in, are actually involved in the drug trade.

                          Before Duterte: How did anti-illegal drug operations fare?

                          More than 63,000 drug suspects were arrested from 2011 to 2015, but low conviction rates plague the government's anti-illegal drugs efforts, according to PDEA data
                          Jodesz Gavilan
                          http://www.rappler.com/newsbreak/in-...odrigo-duterte
                          Published 11:00 AM, July 29, 2016
                          Updated 11:00 AM, July 29, 2016


                          MANILA, Philippines – More than one-fourth of all barangays (villages) in the Philippines are tainted with illegal drugs and the new administration is determined to put an end to this.

                          As of December 2015, according to the Philippine Drug Enforcement Authority (PDEA), 26.39% or 11,321 out of 42,036 barangays in the Philippines are afflicted with drug problems.

                          The focus on illegal drugs nowadays is mainly attributed to President Rodrigo Duterte's campaign platform that included the suppression of crime. (READ: Duterte's marching orders for war on drugs, crime, corruption)

                          In his first State of the Nation Address (SONA) on Monday, July 25, Duterte reiterated his administration’s stand, vowing that the government will not stop until "the last drug lord, the last financier, and the last pusher has surrendered or [been] put behind bars or below the ground.”

                          The fight against drugs, however, is nothing new. It may look very different now given a very vocal chief executive who is unafraid to publicly name high-ranking officials allegedly protecting drug lords, and given the increasing number of suspected drug personalities winding up dead.

                          Even before the presidency of Duterte and his stance against illegal drugs, authorities in different parts of the country had been trying to put an end to the menacing problem.

                          But how did the anti-illegal drug operations fare before?

                          Low conviction rates

                          The success of the fight against illegal drugs – or any crime – can be measured by the number of cases filed and convictions made.

                          In the Philippines, from 2011 to 2015, data show that a total of 47,901 drug-related cases were lodged by authorities against various personalities.

                          The number has increased throughout the 5-year period, with the highest recorded in 2015.

                          Although anti-drug efforts were already initiated even before the presidency of Duterte, their success was hindered by low conviction rates.

                          In 2015, for example, out of the 30,282 cases filed, only a total of 3,330 cases were resolved with 1,714 ending in acquittal, 685 in dismissal, and only 631 in conviction.

                          Meanwhile, in 2014, 3,301 cases were resolved: 1,762 ending in acquittal, 903 in dismissal, and only 636 in conviction.

                          According to PDEA's Project Court Watch, which monitors the progess of drug cases filed, the challenges that hinder personalities from being penalized in accordance with the law include “insufficiency of evidence or probable cause, irregularity or illegality of arrest, search and seizure, and failure to comply with the Comprehensive Drug Act of 2002.”

                          Personalities arrested

                          Together with the number of cases filed, the number of arrests made continuously increased throughout the 5-year period.

                          According to PDEA, a total of 63,181 drug personalities had been arrested from 2011 to 2015. The biggest number of arrests were made in 2015 when 19,432 individuals were put behind bars – 5,640 more than 2014’s 13,792.

                          People arrested in relation to drug charges range from users, pushers, and those involved in drug manufacturing.

                          Out of the total number of arrested individuals from 2011 to 2015, 292 were foreign citizens. At least 145, meanwhile, were found to have come from China.

                          Drug pushers topped those who were arrested, numbering 36,063 in the 5-year period. In 2015, for example, 11,309 pushers were arrested by authorities.

                          Under the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002, a pusher is defined as "any person who sells, trades, administers, dispenses, delivers or gives away to another, on any terms whatsoever, or distributes, dispatches in transit or transports dangerous drugs or who acts as a broker in any of such transactions."

                          Those guilty of being “drug pushers” can face life imprisonment to fines ranging from P500,000 ($10,600) to P10 million ($211,884). Drug users, meanwhile, should undergo a minimum of 6 months of rehabilitation in a treatment center.

                          Increasing number of gov’t officials arrested

                          The current administration has constantly said that many in the public sector are involved in illegal drugs.

                          In fact, on July 5, during the 69th anniversary of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, Duterte named in public 5 police generals involved in the illegal drug trade. He said that he was "compelled by his sense of duty to tell you the police who contributed to deterioration of law and order in this country."

                          Duterte's claim of public officials' involvement may be true, considering the number of arrested individuals who are government officials.

                          According to data from PDEA, a total of 623 public officials were arrested by authorities from 2011 to 2015. Of the number of individuals arrested in 2015, 104 were government employees, 65 were elected officials, and 32 were law enforcers.

                          Increasing operations, seized drugs

                          The number of anti-illegal drugs operations conducted between 2011 and 2015 reached 75,708, according to PDEA’s annual accomplishment reports. These operations include buy-bust, casing and surveillance, interdiction, and searches, among others.

                          Except for a decrease between 2011 and 2012, the number of operations significantly increased from 2013 to 2015. PDEA data show that 2015 registered the highest number of operations at 25,041.

                          The 5-year operations conducted by various law enforcement agencies such as the Philippine National Police (PNP), National Bureau of Investigations (NBI), and PDEA, yielded at least P24.17 billion (P512 million)* worth of dangerous drugs, controlled precursors and essential chemicals (CPEC), and non-drug evidence.

                          The biggest amount of seized illegal drugs and other drug-related supplies was recorded in 2014, totalling P6.18 billion ($130.9 million). The least amount was registered in 2012, equivalent to only P2.53 billion ($53.6 million).

                          Data obtained by Rappler also showed that methamphetamine hydrochloride or shabu comprised the biggest chunk of seized illegal drugs – more than half of the equivalent amount each year.

                          Duterte scenario

                          There is no denying that the war on drugs is currently at its peak under the administration of Duterte whose hatred of illegal drugs is repeated in his speeches.

                          Various government agencies, such as the Philippine National Police (PNP), also backed the chief executive's stand through its programs such as Project Tokhang.

                          Project Tokhang was first implemented by PNP chief Director General Ronald dela Rosa as police chief while he was in Davao City. It involves officials visiting the homes of suspected drug users and pushers and asking them to stop or surrender.

                          Under Project Tokhang, 141,310 voluntarily surrendered from July 1 to 28. Meanwhile, at least 4,386 drug suspects have been arrested.

                          But the war on drugs also yielded casualties. As of July 28, 316 drug suspects have been killed during legitimate operations, according to PNP data. (READ: Duterte’s war on drugs in numbers)

                          As the Duterte administration continues its war on drugs, will we be seeing more convictions in the next 6 years or will there be more casualties? – Rappler.com
                          To sit down with these men and deal with them as the representatives of an enlightened and civilized people is to deride ones own dignity and to invite the disaster of their treachery - General Matthew Ridgway

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                          • #14
                            . untitled Published on July 24th, 2016 | by The Maharlikan
                            Duterte: “We can get many benefits from China”


                            5.15k
                            1


                            MANILA, Philippines – Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte hinted he is open to setting aside Manila’s legal victory against Beijing to resume bilateral talks with China, as suggested by former president Fidel V. Ramos.

                            Ramos was Duterte’s first choice as envoy for talks with China, but the former president cited his age and other commitments as possible reasons for being unable to take on the task. On Friday, July 22, Duterte said he was considering former interior secretary Rafael Alunan III as substitute for Ramos.

                            Duterte said that Ramos’ suggestion – subject to “the will of the people, especially Congress” – can help enrich the southern Philippine island group of Mindanao.

                            “Ramos said that it’s all right if we take out the arbitral judgment from the talks,” Duterte said in a speech on Friday, July 22, in Buluan, Maguindanao.

                            Senior Associate Justice Antonio Carpio of the Philippine Supreme Court, for his part, explained on Friday that negotiations with China can be divided into two parts.



                            Carpio said the first phase “is to reopen the talks without preconditions.” This means the Philippines will not bring up its legal victory, while China will not assert its 9-dash line, the demarcation it uses to claim the West Philippine Sea (South China Sea).

                            China earlier said it will refuse negotiations with the Philippines that will be based on an arbitral tribunal’s ruling against Beijing.

                            This tribunal in The Hague, Netherlands, on July 12 invalidated China’s expansive claim over the West Philippine Sea.

                            Philippine Solicitor General Jose Calida and Foreign Secretary Perfecto Yasay Jr, for their part, said the Philippines will have to use the Hague ruling in talks with Beijing.



                            Despite this ruling, Duterte on Friday explained that the Philippines still wants goodwill from China.

                            “If we can just have a settlement with them despite the arbitral judgment, I think that we can get many benefits,” he told his audience in Maguindanao.

                            To cite an example, he said that “we are planning to establish economic zones and farm-to-market roads.”

                            Duterte said, “China ang may pera, hindi Amerika. Walang pera ang Amerika (It’s China that has money, not America. America doesn’t have money).”
                            ...
                            To sit down with these men and deal with them as the representatives of an enlightened and civilized people is to deride ones own dignity and to invite the disaster of their treachery - General Matthew Ridgway

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                            • #15
                              As usual it is always about the money. That is the only thing that drives the country and most of the people. They are not your friends but rather mercenaries. When the money runs out they will drop you in an instant. No surprise from the President who turns out to be like all the others in how much he can stash away while in office. I just had a feeling, before he was elected, that he would sell out his country to the Chinese. Those islands, 138 miles away, sure you can have them just deposit an undisclosed amount in my bank. Land, you need land, I'll sell you some quietly but don't tell anyone else because foreigners are not allowed to buy land. Same old, same old the country will forever be a basket case and if they do turn around expect to see CHINA stamped everywhere.

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