ICHRP Condemns Harassment And Threats Against Victims Of Duterte’s War On The Poor

The International Coalition for Human Rights in the Philippines (ICHRP) strongly condemns the harassment and threats perpetrated against the families of victims of Rodrigo Duterte’s war on the poor.

Human rights group Rise Up for Life and for Rights (Rise Up), an organization of families of the victims of Duterte’s war on the poor, reports that since Duterte was arrested by the ICC on March 11, their members have received death threats, while online hate speech against them has spiked. These are clearly funded and supported by the Duterte camp in an attempt to silence and intimidate the victims to not testify as witnesses or cooperate with the ICC.

According to the data forensics group The Nerve, Duterte’s supporter networks have used paid ads in Facebook to manipulate online discourse on the ICC arrest of the former president. In one particular Facebook page, the paid ads’ budget ranged from P1,000 to P1,499 (USD 17.44 to USD 26.15). The campaign manipulated networks by embedding political propaganda in entertainment communities and fan pages. It used vlogger networks to amplify its content, turning social media into a political tool. The most expensive ads reached over 1 million viewers, with messages synchronized across platforms.

Among the false narratives promoted were claims of unfair treatment of Duterte during his arrest and targeted online attacks on victims' families, their legal counsels, and those supportive of the movement for justice.

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The Duterte camp, in desperation, has resorted to dirty tactics to try to derail the proceedings and divert the people’s attention from the real issue, which is accountability. Duterte is trying to sway public opinion by playing the victim card, when in fact he was the mastermind of a brutal and bloody war on the poor that claimed 30,000 lives under his presidency.

ICHRP calls on the international community to stand in solidarity with the victims by launching mobilizations and releasing statements condemning the harassment and re-echoing the calls of families for full accountability. We must not allow this re-victimization of the families and survivors who have been at the forefront of the movement for justice. We must continue to stand behind them, provide any support possible, and demand justice for the thousands of victims of Duterte’s war on the poor and dissent.

We demand an end to the attacks on the victims and their families. We reiterate our call for full accountability for Duterte and all those complicit in his crimes against humanity, including former high-ranking government officials, cabinet members, and the list of PNP chiefs who served under him.

ICHRP also supports the call to deny Duterte an interim release. He should be prohibited from returning to the Philippines to ensure the safety of the victims and to prevent him from interfering with the investigation. Finally, we call on the Marcos Jr. government to fully cooperate with the ICC.

What you can do

Organize and participate in mobilizations in your country to support the movement of families and Filipinos seeking justice for the thousands of victims of Duterte’s war on the poor and dissent.

Release statements condemning the harassment and re-echoing the calls of families for full accountability.

Share the stories of victims of the war on poverty and dissent to highlight how they are denied due process and face execution and violations, contrasting this with the due process afforded to Duterte.

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