In October 2014 I was arrested by the Policia Nacional here in Spain and accused of being involved in a drug smuggling organisation. It took two days of being locked up in a cell before my innocence could be established. (Basically, I had rented an industrial unit, and had surrendered the unit at the end of the lease. Those who moved into it afterwards were the bad guys who, for some reason <cough> hadn't signed a lease - I have a suspicion that the landlord's son was involved - and so they came for me) Luckily I was able to show that my tenancy had come to an end because I still had the receipt for handing back the keys. I don't think that the opportunity to explain my non-involvement would have been afforded me had the same scenario taken place in the Phils. For this reason, I can't agree with Duterte's scattergun approach to the drug problem in the Philippines. It's a knee-jerk, lazy, ill thought out response. We can all see that thousands are being slaughtered and although Dead Men Tell No Tales, they can't prove their innocence either. Duterte is a demagogue - playing to public opinion, and the vociferous support he generates is suspect.
It will be 2017 in a bit, so I'm moving on. I don't take all things personally. We have different views so I'll just leave it like that.
(Data cap hits zero on new years eve..Post lost whilst editing) Happy new year!! Roll on new years day and new data allowance!!
The trouble is that those complaining from the outside now had very little to say or lets be frank..Nothing to say about the 10`s of 1000`s of drug related deaths,violence rape,robberies and murders during the Estrada, GMA and Aquino years... Everybody here knew that the poorly paid local Police were drug pushers so where could victims or concerned citizens turn? Who could they ask for help as their corrupt Government (national and local) were only interested in robbing them blind.. So who could they ask?? The European court of human rights? The U.N? Who could they turn too? They turned to the voting booths.
No idea of the reliability of homicide data totals (country comparisons) in the link below but interesting to say the least!! Charts start at 1995 and end in 2013. http://www.indexmundi.com/facts/indicators/VC.IHR.PSRC.P5/compare?country=ph#country=mx:ph:us
You are not alone in criticizing Duterte's approach but, as best I can remember, his detractors haven't once suggested any alternative method for dealing with a very widespread and serious problem. And this problem can not be laid at the feet of Duterte alone or maybe at all: successive generations of administration have for many years allowed both corruption and the drugs trade to build and get out of control. Nobody listened to the majority of Filipinos who are not middle class Liberal supporters, not Aquino or his predecessors, not Binay, certainly not Roxas but only Duterte listened. A man whom you predicted wouldn't even get on the Ballot Paper on his own merit but might be put forward as a spoiler. So what to do? The prisons were overflowing before Duterte took over the Presidency and the antiquated court system can not cope. The solution can not be a return to the status quo of the previous presidency; Filipinos deserve better than that.
I'm not sure that the proposal of an alternative solution is necessary. Sometimes it's enough to take the stance that it's wrong to be murdering people without the opportunity being given to them to defend themselves in a court of law. Duterte seems to think that eliminating drug pushers and users will solve many of the Philippines social ills, and that simply isn't the case. Look, I take the point that I don't live in the Philippines and don't have my finger on the pulse of everyday Filipino society, but with whatever wisdom I have, I believe the problem of poverty without opportunity is at the heart of it. The poor are perhaps understandably tempted to puff their way into oblivion for at least a few hours, rather than face their grinding reality. The more entrepreneurial, will take personal and financial risks in the hope of profit, and peddle the Shabu. The rich and powerful, with the characteristic lack of altruism always evident in Filipino (and capitalist) society, will shrug their shoulders, shake their heads, and get busy, exploiting the opportunity to gather huge wealth at the expense of their fellow countrymen. If Duterte really wants to solve the drug problem, he must first solve the inequality and corruption within the nation. If you are going to shoot any Filipino citizens, go after those making millions, not someone making a hundred pesos a day. But he also needs to provide at least a glimmer of hope to the poor so that the temptation to sell or use is not so embedded in the psyche. Building. That's the answer. Millions of homes need to be built, and slums cleared away. Building always stimulates an economy. That in itself will need hundreds of thousands of people to work. Multinational and indigenous companies need to be given the opportunity to invest in the Filipino people and provide them with employment. Whether by tax breaks, subsidies or other incentives, they need to come to the Philippines and open their factories, offices and shops. None of them will be too eager to do so while the bodies are piling up. Nor is the IMF likely to fund such public spending while the air is full of bits of lead. The Philippines is not a poor country, but it has a third-world mentality. It doesn't need the draconian imposition of martial law or a people's uprising and a communist manifesto. Those are the solutions of banana republics, and we've seen enough of those failed states to realise that the Philippines needn't follow that route.
Some people here seem to be of the opinion that only the "guilty" are being killed. The talk now is switching to Martial Law. http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/862875/pacquiao-emphatizes-with-duterte-on-martial-law-vs-drugs The comments are interesting to read.
Even with trial by jury, that would be a pretty optimistic percentage. Unfortunately, without trial by jury, any miscarriage of justice is a bit tricky to put right, particularly when the sentence involves a bullet to the head.
I'm sure we have all read stories of innocent men being sent to the gallows in the UK. I'm sure many of us have read of the tragedies of 5 year olds being killed in the crossfire. 78% of Filipinos are afraid of being caught in the crossfire according to a recent survey. It is passed off as collateral damage. In any war there is collateral damage, the thousands killed by the bombing of Hiroshima were justified by the Allies as being necessary to save millions if other lives. If people are able to pass off the deaths of innocent bystanders as collateral damage, then I can only wonder when does the collateral damage get too great to justify?
The collateral damage so to speak will only be a price worth paying if DU30 does manage to rid the Philippines of their drug problem in turn saving the lives of many others, otherwise many people will have died in vain.
How many innocent lives are acceptable? Is there a limit? The 5 year old girl has already died in vain. She loved singing, dancing, and wanted to be a famous celebrity. http://www.rt.com/document/57c05fd2c4618856148b4579/ Just a few days later, a four year old girl was also killed. http://i.stuff.co.nz/world/asia/83981399/philippines-war-on-drugs-claims-second-childs-life
Its unfortunate of course, but this is the path the people of the Philippines have taken, and yes just like Brexit the people knew what they were voting for At the end of the day it is a problem for the people of the Philippines to sort out, having a Filipino wife doesn't mean we have any right to get involved in their politics, we should just let them get on with it as there is absolutely nothing we can do about the situation there but moan about it.
Of course not, its good to keep abreast of the situation in the Philippines but as you know, you never know if you're getting the truth, a bit like UK media really
Probably right there, I often get the feeling that the journalist is often trying to plant a seed in their articles. I remember years back my Current Affairs teacher showing us two news articles relating to the same news story and how they can be manipulated to appeal to different reader types.
Well for those of us who DO have wives and children in the Philippines, and who visit them regularly, this IS an important issue... and as I mentioned in a previous thread, can be literally 'close to home', as in 100 yards away, a person having 4 bullets pumped into them at close range, in a public place. Bullets can travel a very long way.
