Advocates speak out against Filipino war on drugs

Filipino President Rodrigo Duterte’s war on drugs has led to the deaths of thousands of people, catching the attention of student groups at UF.

A public forum was held in a Reitz Union classroom Sunday afternoon to discuss Duterte’s human rights violations and how to stop the unjustified deaths.

Since 2016, more than 26,000 people have been killed in Duterte’s violent war on drugs, Malaya Movement Coordinator Yves Nibungco said. The 12 people that attended talked about the threat of Duterte’s war against the Filipino people — particularly poor, indigenous populations.

“The common scenario is that (Filipino citizens) are accused of being drug users with no trial and are killed in police operations with no due process,” Nibungco said. “They have no way of defending themselves.”

The forum was organized by UF’s Asian American Student Union and included speakers from the International Coalition for Human Rights in the Philippines (ICHRP) and the Malaya Movement.

“We want to inform people and let them know that there are some ways that they can get involved,” Nibungco said. “There’s a huge population of Filipinos here in Florida. We believe it is important to bring awareness here.”

Near the end of the forum, Nibungco explained how people in the states can help, including calling their U.S. representatives. He said it is important for U.S. residents to join in outreach to support the growing resistance of Filipino people.

“We are concerned about our tax dollars being spent in the Philippines in the form of military aid,”Nibungco said. “About $5 million goes to train the law enforcement directly participating in Duterte’s war on drugs. We believe people should be aware of that.”

For UF sustainability studies senior Priya Pershadsingh, 20, the presentation was informative, inspiring and even a bit shocking.

“I actually have a really close friend who is from the Philippines, and he doesn’t really talk about situations like this,” Pershadsingh said. “It was really eye-opening.”