Former Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte disclosed during a Senate inquiry on Monday that he had overseen a “death squad” of gang members tasked with eliminating other criminals while serving as mayor of a city in the southern Philippines.
Despite this admission, Duterte denied that he had directed the police to execute thousands of suspects in the intense anti-drug campaign he initiated as president. This campaign, currently under investigation by the International Criminal Court as a potential crime against humanity, left a significant death toll in its wake.
Death squad of seven gang members
Appearing publicly for the first time since the end of his term in 2022, the 79-year-old Duterte attended the televised Senate inquiry, which is scrutinizing the unprecedented scale of drug-related killings under his administration. Duterte acknowledged the existence of a death squad of seven gang members he employed to handle criminal activities during his tenure as Davao City mayor, prior to his presidency. He admitted he had used these individuals to target criminals, though he emphasized they were not police officers.
When questioned by Senator Aquilino Pimentel III, who led the inquiry, and Senator Risa Hontiveros, Duterte’s responses were vague. He suggested he would clarify further details in the next hearing.
Throughout the hearing, often marked by Duterte’s profanity, he claimed full responsibility for the killings that occurred under his presidency from 2016 to 2022. However, he maintained that he had never ordered his national police chiefs, who were also present, to engage in extrajudicial killings. Duterte asked his former police chiefs directly if he had ever instructed them to kill criminals, to which Ronald Dela Rosa, a current senator and the former police chief who spearheaded the drug campaign, responded that he had not received such orders.
Rodrigo Duterte facing investigation
While the International Criminal Court continues its investigation, no criminal charges have been filed against Duterte in Philippine courts concerning these killings. Duterte himself expressed surprise, questioning why the Justice Department had not pursued any cases against him despite his history of directing violent campaigns.
Former Senator Leila de Lima, a prominent critic of Duterte who once investigated the Davao drug killings, argued that substantial evidence and witness accounts of extrajudicial killings existed, though witnesses were initially too intimidated to testify against Duterte. De Lima, detained early in Duterte’s presidency on charges she said were fabricated, was released after being cleared of these charges last year. Sitting near Duterte, she remarked that he had long avoided accountability and expressed hope that witnesses might now feel safer to testify.
Rodrigo Duterte showing no remorse
Arturo Lascanas, a retired police officer who served in Davao under Duterte, claimed in a 2022 interview that up to 10,000 suspects may have been killed in the city by Duterte’s directives. He provided testimony and other evidence to the International Criminal Court and revealed that while some remains had been removed, the bodies of certain victims might still be recoverable and could serve as key evidence.
During the hearing, Duterte showed no signs of remorse, and he warned that if given the chance, he would “wipe out” drug dealers and criminals, whom he believed had resumed illegal activities since he left office.
One of Asia’s most controversial leaders, Duterte completed his six-year term in June 2022, following more than three decades in Philippine politics. His tenure was marked by a disregard for human rights, criticisms of Western influences, and outreach efforts to China and Russia. Activists have labeled Duterte “a human rights calamity” for the widespread deaths linked to his war on drugs, his attacks on the media, and his confrontations with the Catholic Church and political opposition.
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