[45] The inclusion of religious figures among those accused signifies the government’s increased hostility toward the Catholic Church, and to church leaders and priests who have become increasingly vocal in their opposition to the violence. If political leadership in the Philippines changes, however, standing up a truth commission will be paramount. Lee-Ann’s in-laws were also poor, so she went looking for work, finally finding a job in the kitchen staff at a school canteen. “I just want us to be together.”. One of them shot him point-blank, killing him on the spot. She said about seven men in civilian clothes barged into their small home that day, looking for Benigno. Kristina D., 27, and her sister, Diana D., 26, were very close siblings, almost like best friends. “That used to be my son’s room,” Abdul said, pointing a finger at the cemented floor. [35] DJ Yap, “De Lima video not shown but lurid details bared in House probe,” Philippine Daily Inquirer, October 6, 2016, https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/822395/de-lima-video-not-shown-but-lurid-details-bared-at-house-probe (accessed May 2, 2020). While a number of children had died during earlier drug raids, delos Santos’s killing a year into Duterte’s anti-drug campaign was unique because of the discovery of CCTV footage showing the police officers dragging the boy through an alley that led to the spot where his body was found. Several days after her father was killed during a police raid in December 2016, Jennifer M., whose case is detailed above (see Section III), was interviewed by a television network about what happened. I don’t know what’s happening. “All I can do as I sit here all day, in pain, is cry and pray.”. Because he had been the breadwinner, Zeny was forced to look for a job. Please give now to support our work, Impact of the “War on Drugs” on Children in the Philippines, Jennifer M. drew this using pencil and crayon as part of her therapy  for the psychological distress she suffered after witnessing the killing of her father by police officers inside their Quezon City home in December 2016. Lacking any kind transparency, accountability, and vetting, these so-called “watch lists” end up as de facto hit lists. Especially when he learned that we know the man who had my father killed,” Robert said. Usually, wakes here would go on for more a week, sometimes two weeks, but not anymore because nobody comes.” [96]. Benigno kept begging. Nobody could take proper care of them.”[123], “We’re like beggars now, asking for help from everybody,” Diana said. Not long after they took swigs of beer, one of the men drew a gun and aimed it at Diana, who was attending to another customer a few tables away. But as the killings continue, such voluntary efforts have been overwhelmed and are insufficient to address the needs of affected children. Some children have had to leave their homes and community, either going into hiding or relocating because they and their family members feared for their lives. [3] “CHR chief: Drug war deaths could be as high as 27,000,” ABS-CBN News, December 5, 2018, https://news.abs-cbn.com/focus/12/05/18/chr-chief-drug-war-deaths-could-be-as-high-as-27000 (accessed May 2, 2020). All the elements of war are there. [23] Human Rights Watch interviews with three journalists who are part of the so-called “Nightcrawlers,” who covered the killings on a regular basis, Quezon City, November 26, 2019. “They are now afraid to go to school or go home. [28], Domestic civil society organizations and human rights defenders have likewise been targeted with threats by President Duterte, police, and other public officials. [78] Human Rights Watch interview with Robert A., Mandaluyong City, February 7, 2019. We want to be with him, but we can’t anymore.”[80]. This report is based primarily on in-person interviews that Human Rights Watch carried out between March 2018 and February 2020 in Manila, Caloocan City, Quezon City, Cebu City, General Santos City, and Quezon province. A former top official from the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), the main government agency mandated to care for children, told Human Rights Watch there has never been a single cabinet meeting under Duterte in which the effects of the “war on drugs” on children was discussed. [12] He has promised the police cash rewards and promotions for killing drug suspects. Children who have witnessed violence against their loved ones are among those seriously harmed by the “drug war.”[74] Human Rights Watch documented several cases in which children saw the killing of their family member or were in the house where the killing occurred. In all, we interviewed 49 people – 10 children; 23 parents, relatives, or guardians of those children; and 16 individuals from nongovernmental organizations and government offices – to obtain information on 23 deaths in which the victim of a “drug war” killing left behind children. Sometime last year, Kyle was playing with friends when it suddenly turned ugly – he threatened to kill one of his playmates, telling him he would wrap him with packaging tape. The killing of a parent or guardian typically has significant financial consequences for those left behind, especially because most victims have been from impoverished communities, and were often the family’s main or sole breadwinner. Nor were other accountability and rule of law practices reinforced. More broadly, official figures from the Philippine National Police and the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency put the number of “drug war” casualties at 5,601 deaths as of January 31, 2020. [109], Sixto M., 26, from Payatas, Quezon City, used to regularly buy hypertension medicines for his father, Democrito M. Since Sixto was killed in 2017, Democrito has had trouble acquiring the medicines because he lacks the money to purchase them. But Jennifer clung to her father, hugging him as he sat on the sofa, and held up his work ID for the police to see. President Duterte’s pro-China preferences will not be moderated by the United States being cowed into condoning egregious violations of human rights. Alvin’s death affected Zeny’s ability to hold her family together. Since Benigno’s death, there have been days the children have had nothing to eat. [98] Human Rights Watch interview with Father Michael Sandaga, Quezon City, February 4, 2019. Some of the children, he said, tended to isolate themselves, refusing to interact with other children. [69] This is based on regular monitoring by Human Rights Watch of media reports. Kyle’s mother, Zeny R., tried to shield the boy from any news about what had happened to her husband, but Kyle learned about it from his friends. “I am so angry.”, During these bouts of confusion and anger, Jennifer finds refuge in doodling and drawing scenes of her family, kittens, and sad girls on her notepad or on the plywood walls of her home. [4] In many cases, the police have planted evidence such as drugs and weapons on bodies to justify their “nanlaban” claims. Urge relevant government agencies, such as the Department of Social Welfare and Development and the Department of Education, to enforce existing laws and policies for the protection of children. Knife! It also states that governments must take all appropriate measures to ensure that children are protected against all forms of discrimination or punishment based on the status and activities of the children’s parents or family members (art. [34] “Philippines: Drop Charges Against Duterte Critic,” Human Rights Watch news release, February 14, 2018, https://www.hrw.org/news/2018/02/14/philippines-drop-charges-against-duterte-critic (accessed May 2, 2020). [131] Convention on the Rights of the Child, adopted November 20, 1989, G.A. Every child has a right to a standard of living adequate for the child’s physical, mental, spiritual, moral, and social development (art. Protect adversely affected children from economic exploitation and from performing any work that is likely to be hazardous or to interfere with the child’s education, or to be harmful to the child's health or physical, mental, spiritual, moral, or social development. [133] This official said that as of May 2019, the impact and effect of the “drug war” violence on children had not been raised in any Cabinet meeting. [6], While the daily number of killings has declined somewhat since the carnage of the first year of the campaign in 2016-2017, killings still occur on a frequent basis. Support the creation of a multi-agency initiative that will provide specific assistance to the children affected by the anti-drug campaign. The death of Jasper, who worked at a computer store and was supporting his six nephews and nieces, left his family economically devastated. And when she entered into a relationship with her current boyfriend, Kyle became even more aggressive and violent. [16] According to the Department of Justice, only 33 cases out of the 76 it investigated in 2018 have resulted in charges filed against police officers. (No. [14] Duterte also promised police officers impunity for rights abuses, stating he would protect them, and ultimately pardon them, if ever they are convicted for enforcing his anti-drug policies. Vanda Felbab-Brown and Harold Trinkunas, “UNGASS 2016 in Comparative Perspective: Improving the Prospects for Success,” The Brookings Institution, April 29, 2015, http://www.brookings.edu/~/media/Research/Files/Papers/2015/04/global-drug-policy/FelbabBrown-TrinkunasUNGASS-2016-final-2.pdf?la=en. Rather than a serious effort to root out corruption, those purges served principally to tighten control over the police. Police say they shot him because he fought back. Unidentified assailants had wrapped his head had in packaging tape and stabbed him 19 times before dumping his body on an overpass in Tondo, an impoverished district in Manila. It's like your mind is in disarray.”. [91] Human Rights Watch interview with Malou M., Quezon City, February 8, 2019. 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