UN seems unable to comprehend: Ernesto Abella
The presidential Palace of the President of the Philippines, Malacanang, which had been maintaining a stoic silence on the utterances of the international observers about the goings-on in the country after Duterte took over as the President in June.
But, how long could they keep mum when they knew that they are pursuing the best course of action and, perhaps, the only one that would be likely to have any impact on the scenario of chaos and anarchy that is prevailing in the country; in fact, the drug-running and drug-peddling networks have merged with daily life in such a manner that almost everyone seems to be involved in some way or the other.
The public animosity towards drugs and their suppliers or consumers was simply not there because they were all deriving some benefit from the illegal trade in drugs; that is not to say that everyone was addicted or involved, it is only that nobody would have dared to even dared to raise an eyebrow unless he was prepared to face the ire of the drug mafia.
Then came Duterte with his foul mouth and his punishing ways and the ferocious, snarling beasts become comely and frightened beings; self-styled vigilantes started putting an end to drug peddlers and the scenario of the Davao Death Squads came back with a vengeance.
Nobody came forward to surrender claiming that he was a drug addict or a drug pusher because the horrific fear of death was missing; even the previous regimes were coming, ruling and going to get re-elected again to keep their coffers getting filled many times over.
It is we Filipinos who have to thrash out the issues that are making our beloved country what we wish or to be; opinions of international observers are just that, opinions; they are not a solution to our vexed problems nor will they feed a hungry mouth whose parents or guardians perished due to drugs.
High moral grounds are only for those whose belly is full; we want solutions and rectification of the ways of our society, not moral speeches. Hence, the Government ruling the country, whose head has made a promise to eradicate corruption and the scourge of drugs within three months, could not keep quiet for long.
The present crusade against drugs is seen as the only way that the fear of god would permeate into the ruthless minds of the drug mafia and the men and women who are keeping their supply lines pumping.
In this backdrop, the administration of Malacanang has come out with all guns blazing against the United Nations because their learned observers had been making statements against the war against illegal drugs that was leading to killings and arrests on a scale never seen before.
After bearing the brickbats for quite some time, the Duterte administration accused the United Nations and other observers of seeming incomprehension and not being able to grasp the full import of the war on illegal drugs.
The accusations against the observers of the local and international bodies were issued by Ernesto Abella the Presidential spokesman; it was a reaction to the derogatory criticism of the atmosphere of summary killings that had the blessings and support of the President.
Agnes Callamard, Special rapporteur at the United nations had launched a scathing attack on the summary executions by self-styled vigilantes; he pointed out the illegal trade in drugs should be left to the courts and not handed over to armed gunmen in the streets of Philippines.
He had called upon the Filipino authorities to put an immediate end to such lawless methods and to adopt the proper ways according to the law of the land to put an end to extrajudicial executions and targeted killings of people who had not been proved guilty of the crimes which they were being killed for.
Similarly, Dianius Puras, who is also Rapporteur at the UN for issues connected to Public Health, also joined Callamard in callinmg upon the Filipino government to treat the illegal trade in drugs as an issue of public health and deal with it according to the provisions of Human Rights Rules of the Philippines.
They also asserted that it was not enough that President Duterte had publicly condemned the extrajudicial killings by the self-appointed vigilantes who had no legal locus standi.
Abella explained that the war against illegal drugs also ensured that the narco-politicians who were using drugs money to fight and win elections through purchased voted were also not able to succeed.
Was it not an amazing achievement that the initiative had resulted in the voluntary surrender of hundreds of thousands of people who were consumers of these illegal drugs? Abella asked; yes, it was a fact that a number of people had been killed but this war is being conducted with the common good of the majority and cleansing the community of this rampant scourge.
It was not as if the government was immune to the extrajudicial killings and did not bother; the President himself was seized of the matter and was worried that things were proceeding in an unplanned manner; however, he had issued instructions to the police and intelligence authorities to not turn a blind eye towards these incidents that were happening all over the place.
In the interest of balanced governance, the President Rodrigo Duterte had issued an order tasking the police for thoroughly investigating each and every case where a vigilante death had been reported.
It is also possible that due to the overzealousness of the vigilantes the self-appointed do-gooders, some innocent lives might have been lost; all such cases should be aimed at ensuring that the civil liberties promised to the citizens under the constitution of the Philippines were maintained.
Wherever it was detected that some person had been killed due to some ulterior motive; these instructions also included those cases that saw someone killed in the operations by the police but was reported to be innocent.
However, some of the extrajudicial killings were understood to be organizational or internecine acts which appeared to be the handiwork of the drug mafia or due to some squabbles within the drug trade which is notorious for such killings as a routine measure.
The President had made it abundantly clear on many occasions that it is not state policy to kill people and that no extrajudicial killing will be tolerated
Abella also claimed that there was a marked decrease in the crime rate and this trend is likely to continue but the government does not accept the versions of anyone that attributes these extrajudicial acts to the Filipino government whether it is local or international observers.
The observers have to be fair particularly to those hardworking men in uniform who are risking all they have including their limbs and lives and the happiness of their families.
The problem of drugs is not just a issue related to social problems or to public health; here in the Philippines it is also seen as an issue of national security.
President worried
The mentions of the rapporteurs of the United Nations have shown that they suffer from seeming incomprehension not only about the realities of life and the functioning of the government of the Philippines but also of how the mafia takes advantage of all the loopholes to splash the efforts of the security forces in a bad light.
To say that the President or the administrative machinery is unconcerned or turning a blind eye to the unconstitutional killings is indeed a mistake and displays a total lack of understanding of the Filipino conditions or its initiatives.
It is not as if the President is happy with the extrajudicial killings that are taking place according to Malacanang; the President is a worried man when he sees the law being misused by these vigilantes and he has been expressing this concern at all the interactions and meetings with other citizens who have brought up this matter.
The war is being conducted by the government against the illegal trade of drugs that are causing untold damage to the youth; the rapporteurs must understand that the war is not against any individuals and that the President cannot be happy over unconstitutional killings as averred by the UN rapporteurs.
Happiness is not the word that should be used under these circumstances; it just displays a motivated lack of understanding; the President is troubled and profoundly concerned over the killings.
Ernesto Abella, the Palace spokesperson was also categorical that the murders, whether justified or not, had focused the attention of the people on the mighty dimensions of this sorry situation.
It is reported that the figure of those killed in this war on drugs is just past the 550 deaths mark since the inauguration of the President on June 30.
This author is of the straightforward opinion that, as long as the people of the Philippines who voted him to power are satisfied that the right course of action is being followed, they need not bother about the opinions of observers because they can only observe and comment without contributing anything fruitful to the Filipino nation.
Umrao singh umraoz.wordpress.com
Saturday, 20 August 2016
Written for: Lars-Magnus Carlsson www.thephilippinepride.com
