Publication

This report confirms that more than 1,500 suspects have been killed by police officers since Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte instigated his campaign against drug-related crime. By using two datasets, the text’s author also breaks down the extrajudicial killings among regions and provinces, and across time. As for the “why?” of these murders, the author believes Duterte is deliberately using police vigilantism to create a stronger Philippine state, regardless of its disturbing similarities to the methods Ferdinand Marcos used prior to declaring martial law in 1972.