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President Duterte’s fight against the illegal drug trade is relentless and continues to draw reactions of approval as well as disgust. While the President clearly instructs law enforcers to act within what the law dictates, a disturbing number of allegedly extra-judicial killings surface. Yet THOUSANDS have surrendered to the police as users, pushers and/or traffickers.
If you were the mother of the little girl who was raped then strangled to death by a teenage boy high on shabu..if you were the father who, for years, has fought for justice over the killing of his wife and children by a group of men intoxicated with heroin..if you were the Overseas Contract Worker used as a mule for drug trafficking against your will..if you were the person who had no choice but to stay with the drug lord as trafficker but still wished you had a way out..if you were among the increasing number of Filipinos now afraid for themselves and for their children over the possibility of being implicated with, involved in, or victimized by the pervasive poison of illegal drugs, WHAT WILL YOU SAY?
What about the innocent who have been hit by the government actions as collateral damage? We can and should put matters in the hands of our justice system. But can we rely on it? Do we have trust in it? Or do we need to reform the institution so it will serve each of us instead of serving mostly the privileged? And we all know this will take collective effort and time to realize.
Meanwhile, the alleged drug lords and their notorious henchmen proliferate fear among our citizens and even dare to defy the government from inside their “prison”, recently exposed as lavish dens of stealthy activities. Are they the end of the chain? What about their cohorts within the government, the foreign manufacturers and big time capitalists?
We don’t have time to just wait and let the violations to multiply some more. So what do we expect from the government to do? What can we do as citizens?
In our young population where expectations from the parents, elders and national leaders are high, we should be able to offer them immediate measures albeit preventive, like family security – discuss with them the issues they hear from the schools and the media, share with them ways of protecting themselves guided by knowledge and experience. Community policing should be developed and strengthened. For national security, the government should show examples of determination and solid action against illegal drugs which it presently demonstrates through drastic measures.
When the problem such as the one presented by the illegal drug trade causes serious damage to our nation’s moral fiber and internal security, drastic measures may well be the way to resolve it to effect a drastic change. What other options do we have?
If you were the mother of the little girl who was raped then strangled to death by a teenage boy high on shabu..if you were the father who, for years, has fought for justice over the killing of his wife and children by a group of men intoxicated with heroin..if you were the Overseas Contract Worker used as a mule for drug trafficking against your will..if you were the person who had no choice but to stay with the drug lord as trafficker but still wished you had a way out..if you were among the increasing number of Filipinos now afraid for themselves and for their children over the possibility of being implicated with, involved in, or victimized by the pervasive poison of illegal drugs, WHAT WILL YOU SAY?
What about the innocent who have been hit by the government actions as collateral damage? We can and should put matters in the hands of our justice system. But can we rely on it? Do we have trust in it? Or do we need to reform the institution so it will serve each of us instead of serving mostly the privileged? And we all know this will take collective effort and time to realize.
Meanwhile, the alleged drug lords and their notorious henchmen proliferate fear among our citizens and even dare to defy the government from inside their “prison”, recently exposed as lavish dens of stealthy activities. Are they the end of the chain? What about their cohorts within the government, the foreign manufacturers and big time capitalists?
We don’t have time to just wait and let the violations to multiply some more. So what do we expect from the government to do? What can we do as citizens?
In our young population where expectations from the parents, elders and national leaders are high, we should be able to offer them immediate measures albeit preventive, like family security – discuss with them the issues they hear from the schools and the media, share with them ways of protecting themselves guided by knowledge and experience. Community policing should be developed and strengthened. For national security, the government should show examples of determination and solid action against illegal drugs which it presently demonstrates through drastic measures.
When the problem such as the one presented by the illegal drug trade causes serious damage to our nation’s moral fiber and internal security, drastic measures may well be the way to resolve it to effect a drastic change. What other options do we have?
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