Op-Ed: Duterte’s Arrest: A Step Toward Justice, But What About the Drug Trade?
The arrest of former Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte on March 11, 2025, marks a pivotal moment in the fight for justice. After years of evading accountability for the thousands of extrajudicial killings under his brutal anti-drug campaign, Duterte now faces charges before the International Criminal Court (ICC). Long criticized for its inefficacy, the ICC’s bold move signals its commitment to holding even the most powerful individuals accountable for crimes against humanity. Duterte’s arrest raises a crucial question: Will this bring real justice, or is it just the beginning of a larger battle against state-sanctioned violence?
Following independent and impartial investigations, the Office of the Prosecutor of the ICC alleges that Duterte – the founder and head of the Davao Death Squad (DDS), former Mayor of Davao City, and later President of the Philippines – committed crimes as part of a widespread and systematic attack against the civilian population. The Chamber reviewed the evidence submitted by the Prosecution and found reasonable grounds to believe that Duterte was individually responsible, as an indirect co-perpetrator, for crimes against humanity. His authority over the DDS, his position as President, and his leadership of the “War on Drugs” campaign facilitated widespread and systematic attacks that resulted in thousands of deaths.
Demonstrators demand justice for victims as Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte appeared before the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague, Netherlands, Friday, March 14, 2025. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong)
The “War on Drugs” campaign led to years of extrajudicial killings, with bodies piling up both during and after Mr. Duterte’s presidency. However, his crimes began much earlier, during his tenure as Mayor of Davao City. Initially, Duterte dismissed claims of a so-called “Death Squad” operating under his orders. However, in 2024, he admitted that a death squad existed under his watch to control crime, though he provided conflicting accounts of who was in charge. At first, he claimed it was run by police officers, but then stated that it was controlled by gangsters, saying, “I had a death squad of seven, but they were not police; they were gangsters.”
Retired police officer Arturo Lascañas alleged that members of the DDS were paid by Duterte during his time as mayor to carry out brutal killings of criminals and political and media opponents. While Lascañas’s statements were initially dismissed as fabrications, Duterte’s later admission of the DDS’s existence lends credibility to these claims.
Duterte’s actions were never driven by a desire to develop or improve the country. Instead, they were purely motivated by power and control. Was Duterte truly waging a war on drugs, or was he waging a war for power? It wasn’t just individuals involved with drugs who were killed—witnesses to these killings and their family members were also targeted. These attacks on civilians were not mere killings; they were slaughterings.
Former Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte is seen on a screen in the courtroom of the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague, Netherlands, Friday, March 14, 2025. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong, Pool)
As soon as Mr. Duterte was inaugurated as president in 2016, his war on drugs took a brutal turn. In less than three months, a group of police officers barged into Mary Ann Domingo’s tiny apartment and killed her partner, Luis Bonifacio, and her 19-year-old son, Gabriel. Many family members of victims lived through these horrors and repeatedly pleaded for justice in public hearings. Reymie Bayunon’s 7-year-old son, Jefferson, was also fatally shot, joining the long list of innocent victims of Duterte’s campaign. While Duterte insisted that he never ordered the DDS to kill defenseless suspects, he openly admitted to encouraging police to provoke criminals into fighting back so they could be killed. He stated, “I encouraged criminals to fight back, and when they fought back, kill them so my problems in the city would be solved.” But how did 19-year-old Gabriel or 7-year-old Jefferson fit this narrative? Were they armed? Were they involved in drug dealing?
The government’s justification for the killings was always the same: suspected drug users resisted arrest, forcing officers to act in self-defense. However, freelance photojournalist Vincent Go, who covered more than 900 crime scenes, questioned this claim, asking, “How does somebody who fights back get shot five times in the head?” Dr. Raquel Fortun, the only forensic pathologist in the Philippines to examine the remains of those killed during the drug war, reviewed 109 bodies and concluded that the victims were “shot to be killed.” If Duterte truly intended to go after drug kingpins and high-level dealers, why were most of the victims poor and working-class men and boys? If drug users were killed for allegedly fighting back, why did witnesses—like in Mr. Jumola’s case—testify that he was on his knees begging for his life when police executed him? Mr. Go, who covered Mr. Jumola’s death, tracked down a witness who confirmed this account, further contradicting the government’s justification.
While Duterte’s campaign was brutal and unjust, it also highlights a larger truth—the global drug trade is an intricate and evolving network that cannot be eradicated through violence alone. To combat this crisis effectively, international cooperation is key. The real crime in the Philippines was not the supposed effort to end drug use or eliminate the drug trade, but the slaughter of countless innocent people who were never the problem to begin with. The ICC’s decision to arrest Duterte has raised an important question: While killing thousands of individuals—who are merely branches of a larger problem like drug abuse and trafficking—is clearly not the right solution, how can we effectively address the root of this issue?
Drug trafficking and abuse are not just domestic problems confined to the Philippines; they are global issues affecting nearly every country today. Whether it is Colombia, the largest source of cocaine, or Myanmar, now the world’s largest opium producer, these countries may be the suppliers, but the buyers come from all over the world.
The era of vertically integrated, monolithic criminal organizations is over—where eliminating a single root could once destroy the entire tree. Today, the drug trade is highly globalized, with production, transportation, and distribution divided among different groups specializing in distinct stages of the supply chain. Smaller domestic criminal groups are subcontracted by larger organizations, making the drug trade a highly organized and systematic enterprise. This evolving, adaptive, and complex system requires an equally sophisticated and networked response to dismantle it effectively.
The only way to address this issue is through international cooperation among countries and organizations that can combat the various criminal networks operating simultaneously across multiple regions. One such successful collaboration is Operation Orion, whose 14th edition, a 45-day-long operation, concluded in September 2024. Operation Orion was Colombia’s long-running anti-drug trafficking effort that brought together institutions from 62 nations to fight organized crime.
Captain Manuel Rodríguez, director of the Colombian navy’s anti-narcotics unit, highlighted how partner nations contributed aircraft, helicopters, and frigates to intercept illegal shipments. However, the most crucial element was the sharing of intelligence, which allowed authorities to gather and analyze information from every possible angle.
A major breakthrough in this operation was the interception of six semi-submersibles carrying cocaine, uncovering a new route used to transport unprecedented amounts of the drug to Australia. This was the first known instance of a semi-submersible vessel being used to reach Oceania, suggesting that drug cartels have recently adopted these inconspicuous vessels to evade anti-narcotics officials in ports while remaining undetected at sea.
This development underscores the growing demand for drugs, pushing suppliers and traffickers to find new, more sophisticated ways to expand their operations. The 1,400 tons of drugs seized during Operation Orion were worth an estimated $8.5 billion. In addition to 225 tons of cocaine, authorities confiscated over 1,000 tons of marijuana, 66 vessels, and arrested more than 400 alleged members of criminal organizations.
In this Saturday, April 6, 2013 file photo, Spanish Navy training ship Juan Sebastian de Elcano arrives carrying the remains of Ramon Power y Giralt to San Juan, Puerto Rico. Spanish police say they have seized 127 kilograms of cocaine from Juan Sebastian de Elcano, who allegedly carried the drug from Colombia and dropped off some in New York. (AP Photo/Ricardo Arduengo, File)
These figures illustrate the sheer scale of the problem. Addressing drug trafficking requires more than punitive crackdowns—it demands a coordinated global response to dismantle the networks that fuel this illicit trade. The results of this operation are a testament to the success of synergy and cooperation between international allies in confronting transnational criminal networks. As the drug trade becomes increasingly global and trafficking groups evolve into horizontal networks, international cooperation through large-scale operations like Orion remains crucial.
The ICC, as an international body, has demonstrated its ability to hold criminals accountable for their actions. While Duterte—a leader from the developing world—was arrested after his power had significantly waned, his case sends a crucial message that even once-powerful figures can face justice. However, this raises a pressing concern: will the same standards be applied to leaders from wealthier, more dominant nations, where global influence and political alliances often shield individuals from accountability? Russian President Vladimir Putin and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu both face ICC warrants, yet neither has been arrested—largely because they remain in power and continue to wield significant global influence. The true test for the ICC lies in whether it can uphold justice universally, regardless of a leader’s country, status, or political standing on the world stage.
The war on drugs is not about cutting off twigs or branches—it is about uprooting the problem at its source, which spans across the world. While International bodies like the ICC continue to work on their functioning and accountability, there also must be more large-scale operations like Orion in the war on drugs where international cooperation is a must. Duterte may now face justice, but the real war on drugs is far from over. To dismantle the networks fueling this crisis, we need more coordinated global action—not bloodshed.