Duterte's Drug War (full documentary) | FRONTLINE

♪ ♪ NARRATOR: Tonight... The Philippine leader has faced harsh criticism for launching a bloody war on

drug

s. NARRATOR: The film that has been hailed as a "street investigation of Duterte's murderous campaign in action." (screaming) A testament to a dark time of cruelty... (laughing) "...apocalyptically real." And "electrifying viewers will have to remind themselves that this is happening now." "By Order of the President," a special presentation of "Frontline." ♪ ♪ Tonight's program contains graphic images. Viewer discretion is advised. Hitler massacred three million Jews. Now there are three million

drug

addicts. He would be happy to slaughter them. (gunshots) Another night, another murder in the Philippine government's war on drugs.

All of this openly encouraged by President Duterte in what has become open season on anyone suspected of being linked to drugs. his orders to his people and his police: "Kill them." At least if Germany had Hitler, the Philippines would have had me. Vigilante style murders. Many suspect police involvement. President Duterte is fulfilling his promises with a vengeance: massive extrajudicial executions. My anti-drug campaign will not stop until the last trafficker and the last drug dealer are... (imitates throat slitting) (cheers and applause) (crowd chanting "Duterte!") (screaming in Filipino language) The public has largely supported Duterte's ruthless methods, but that may finally be changing.

OCTAVIO DEIMOS (speaking Filipino language): (sirens howling) (man drawing attention) (applauding) Please take a seat. We really want a change. We want to make a difference, my dear friends. We want to make the future of Caloocan the home of the discipline. (man getting attention) It is very important to win people's hearts and minds. We don't want to kill. No. If we can solve things without having the death penalty, why not? Okay, show time. Are you ready? Ready, sir. Fire a bullet and holster. And remember, gentlemen... (speaking in Filipino language) Ready, up! (gunshots) Stop the fire! (beep) damn. (speaks Filipino language) Funda. (speaking Filipino language) You don't know how to... (speaking Filipino language) Son of a bitch.

Do you understand a round? Do you understand a round!? Yes, sir. "Yes, sir, yes, sir." (speaking Filipino language) The important thing in this type of training is your discipline. (exhales) (gun cocking and firing) (speaking Filipino language) To earn respect, you need two things. They are afraid of me or they like me. Just those two things. (laughs) 30 push-ups. (speaks in Filipino language) Two, three, four, five... (speaks in Filipino language) Seven, eight, nine, ten... The Filipino leader has faced harsh criticism for launch a bloody drug war in your country over the past year. Thousands of people have been murdered...

Reports of more than 5,000 drug-related deaths. The poor have been the most affected by the campaign. ...President Rodrigo Duterte. They say their so-called war on drugs is a class war: a war against the poor. AXEL MARTINEZ (speaking Filipino language): (people talking, laughing) MARTINEZ: (all talking) One, two, three. (laughter) MARTINEZ: (everyone chatting, laughing) MARTINEZ: (people talking at a distance) MARTINEZ: ♪ ♪ (singing) MARTINEZ: (sirens wailing) DEIMOS: MARTINEZ: The police have faced increasing criticism and accusations of rampant corruption and human rights abuses. Now there is an important change in the campaign. WILL CABRALES (speaking Filipino language): JAKE: Oh. (flips lighter) (horns playing in the distance) JAKE: Oh.

JAKE: CABRALES: JAKE: ♪ ♪ CABRALES: (dry fires) (vehicle engines making noise) MODEQUILLO: ♪ ♪ (dogs barking, howling) (woman screaming) WOMAN: OFFICER: OFFICER: AUSSA: WOMAN: AUSSA: WOMAN (screams ) : OFFICER: WOMAN (screaming): OFFICER: WOMAN: AUSSA: WOMAN: AUSSA: WOMAN (screaming): OFFICER: WOMAN: What is this? So many paraphenalia. So many, so many. What is this? Jimmy? Oh, what is that? WOMAN: OFFICERS: (moaning, crying) WOMAN (crying): OFFICER: CABRALES: WOMAN: (crying) OFFICER: (dog barking) AUSSA: OFFICER: WOMAN: ♪ ♪ (continues barking) MODEQUILLO: AUSSA: MODEQUILLO: (car horn car honks) ♪ ♪ JAKE: (ring) I saw him with less than ten grams of marijuana. (people talking in the background) (cell door closes) JAKE (in Filipino language): (Adolfo Agustin singing) ♪ And you know, sometimes I prefer to be... ♪ (continues singing) (hair clipper whirring) ♪ Too much love will give you ♪ (continues singing) MAN: AGUSTINE: (cane hitting the bars) (man groans) (canes hitting the bars) AGUSTIN: (man groans) AGUSTINE: (engines revving) (people talking) ORLY FERNANDEZ: (motor vehicle rattling) ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ Remember that the drug situation is still very, very alive and cruel. (bird squawking) (child screaming) When I became president, I said, "Don't destroy the Philippines.

Don't do drugs or kill our children, because I will kill you." So what's wrong with that? (kids shouting play

full

y) ♪ ♪ MODEL: Now the president is very anxious about his campaign against drugs, the war on drugs. MAN: If you want to be a good leader... MAN: You must be a good follower. The president's approach, there were a lot of comments that are kind of harsh. But, you know, sometimes we also need to be heavy-handed. Because drugs are the evil of all evils. ♪ ♪ (Philippine national anthem playing over speakers) DEIMOS: (people talking in background) DEIMOS: (laughing) MODEL: DEIMOS (chuckles): ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ (TV playing in the distance) MAN (on TV): (TV audio fades out) (Fernandez calls dog) MAN (on TV): (bird chirping) LOREMIE SEVILLA: ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ Police, just do your duty.

Just follow my instructions and you will have nothing to worry about. I'll protect you. Murder and manslaughter or whatever, unlawful killing, is not allowed. Your duty requires you to overcome the resistance of the person you are arresting. If he resists, and is violent, endangering the lives of my police officers, you are free to kill the idiots. That is my order to you. OFFICER: This one! REPORTER: MAN: How many suspects, sir? MAN: REPORTER: ♪ ♪ (dog barking) (honks) FUJI: MARTINEZ: FUJI: MARTINEZ: DEIMOS: (dog barking) BOY: DEIMOS: BOY: DEIMOS: (thunder) Drug dealers, drug users, the problem of nation. (thunder) Those are usually the shooting victims. (murmurs) Many shootings seem very professional.

Yes. You can understand why people might think it was the police. Yes, people might think that it was a... or some police officers did it, but in reality it wasn't like that. The police kill when they defend themselves. (laughs) If the police do it, they will... It's, uh... It's legitimate, because we, the police, are law enforcement officers, so what we're doing is simply enforcing the law. President Duterte really hates drugs. A drug addict or drug dealer, that type of person has no place here anymore. That is his choice. They don't want to live anymore. They want to live in hell now. (laughs) They choose to transfer, reassign themselves in hell.

I heard that most of the shootings here in the south were contrary to what you have said. Was it the police? Some said about that. That the police were doing the shootings? Yes. Did other policemen say that? Yes, other police officers. ♪ ♪ (people talking in the background) MODEQUILLO: (cheering and applauding) These drug traffickers know very well the consequences of their criminal acts. The war on illegal drugs is far from over. Bodies are recovered from the streets of Manila almost every day; this time, a tricycle taxi driver who was shot in the head. (tattoo needle buzzing) (buzzing stops) (buzzing resumes) (buzzing stops) MARTINEZ: (buzzing resumes) ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ FERNÁNDEZ: MARTINEZ: FUJI: President Duterte!

You knowingly and deliberately implemented a permitting structure for mass murder. And in due time, you will be held accountable for the thousands of extrajudicial killings in the Philippines. (crowd applauds) (speaking Filipino language) CAJIPE: Huh? CAJIPE: MODEQUILLO: Those shoots seem quite professional. Can you understand why people think maybe it's the police or related to the police? Uh, you know, there are a lot of people who think the police are involved in that. But no, we... we are not after the lives of these people. In Caloocan we have 1,000 police officers. I can't see them all. There is always a black sheep.

And some police officers in Caloocan told us that some of those shootings were carried out by the police. Are they just black sheep or do you think it comes from above? I don't know, because, you know, sometimes there are incidents that are still under investigation. Every murder or every incident that's actually happening is... is under investigation. (people talking in the background) Was it something that you had heard, that maybe it was the district police who carried out those shootings? Um, I don't know... I don't know. I have no comment on this. Um, but the important thing is that the investigation is underway. ♪ ♪ (birds singing) "Shootings prompt dismissal of Caloocan's top cop.

Relief brought on by a series of unresolved incidents in the city. More than six months after he vowed to keep Caloocan City less bloody, the “Senior Superintendent Jemar Modequillo was fired from his position effective Monday for failing to resolve more than half of the shootings that occurred on his watch.” ♪ ♪ Our Lord makes many sacrifices to save people. So we are not really God. Nobody is perfect and we are all sinners. Sometimes we have to repent. But it's kind of unfair to me. Being a good soldier, we must be a good follower. We have to continue. We have to continue. (women singing) (siren howling in the distance) (police radio plays) ♪ ♪ (vehicle engine sounds) (siren howling in the distance) What are your sins? (hair clippers whirring) The war on drugs will not be left aside. (scissors whir) Instead, it will be as relentless and chilling... (scissors whir) (scissors fade out) ...as the day it began. (Martinez expels breath) Go to pbs.org/

frontline

to learn more about the origins of the Philippine drug war.

Until the last dealer and the last drug dealer are... (cutting sound) And the activists trying to reform drug policies and laws. (screaming) Connect to the “Frontline” community on Facebook and Twitter, and watch anytime on the PBS Video app or pbs.org/

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