Editor's Note: Shooting drug dealers, what is the Philippines up to?—"The "Davao model" is not necessarily applicable to the Philippines as a whole, and the post-War on Drugs Philippines calls for a more mature and modern form of governance. Duterte's political goal of establishing his authority through this operation has been achieved, and there is no need for a similar large-scale "war on drugs" in the future, which should return to a regularized anti-drugs model.

"The "Davao model" is not necessarily applicable to the Philippines as a whole, and the post-War on Drugs Philippines calls for a more sophisticated and modern form of governance. The cold-bloodedness is disappointing.

6moon30On Sunday, after assuming the presidency, Duterte officially declared war on drug traffickers, saying he would3He has eliminated drug lords within months to six months and allowed the police to "execute" suspected drug traffickers "on the spot" without going through the judicial process. He also openly called on his supporters to call the police anytime and even take to the streets to shoot drug dealers. According to The Philippine Star, Philippine National Police (PNP) Chief Director General Dela Rosa said during a Senate hearing on Tuesday that he has been a member of the PNP since the beginning of his term as PNP chief.7moon1Since January 1, 2012, there have been712drug dealers shot dead by police.1067People were killed in the streets by unidentified gunmen. In addition to the bloodshed in the streets, police arrested more than 10,000 drug traffickers and addicts, more than60Ten thousand people surrendered to the police, leading to overcrowding in Philippine prisons.

In addition to eliminating drug dealers on the streets, Duterte has not hesitated to fire on the powerful elite and local officials who provide shelter for drug crimes. Rich Filipino businessman Pit? Reem, and Espinosa, the mayor of Albuera, Leyte, have all turned themselves in to the police on suspicion of being involved in drugs.

In fact, carrying out such an operation is not at all surprising to Duterte. First of all, poverty, corruption and drugs are the three major chronic problems in the Philippines. Among them, the Philippines is an important global stronghold for drug production and trafficking, and the number of drug addicts in the country is as high as370There are 10,000 people in the Philippines. The proliferation of drugs has given rise to social problems such as robbery and theft, seriously affecting the security environment in the Philippines. As early as during the election campaign, Duterte promised to crack down on drug trafficking once elected, and the launch of the "War on Drugs" also has the consideration of honoring the original campaign promise; secondly, "iron fist" has become a label of Duterte, and in its Duterte has been labeled as an "iron-fisted" person in his administration of Davao City.22Over the years, Davao City, a city situated on a chaotic island, has been single-handedly transformed into one of the world's ten safest cities, thanks to an "iron-blooded policy" against thieves and drug traffickers. The "war on drugs" in the Philippines can also be seen as a national replication of the Davao model.

More importantly, for a country such as the Philippines, where family politics dominates and political power is deeply rooted, Duterte's bold approach to the country's deep-rooted political and social problems, regardless of seniority, is conducive to the rapid establishment of his authority, consolidation of power, and to win the support of the people, especially the grassroots. So far, Duterte's sensational "war on drugs" has achieved immediate results. According to the latest statistics of the Philippine police, in the first month of Duterte's administration, the national crime rate dropped dramatically.49%The

But will the operation continue, there is a great deal of uncertainty about how long it will be carried out. Although Duterte has shown unusual persistence, his iron-blooded policies have attracted strong criticism at home and abroad. The rule of law instead of the rule of man is an important feature of modernization, but its adoption of "extrajudicial executions", putting populism above the law and shooting drug dealers without going through any legal procedures has violated the personal rights of the people involved. Though it may "strike fear into the hearts" of those involved in drugs for a short period of time, drug crimes cannot be eliminated in a single operation. In the long run, it is not a solution to the problem. In addition, photos of drug addicts' corpses on the streets, which have been disseminated through social media, have triggered panic in the country and abroad. Although Duterte claimed that the police shootings were of drug dealers, not drug addicts, such a simple and brutal way of punishment not only tarnishes the Philippines' international image, but also is not conducive to the country's domestic political stability.

Duterte's political objective of establishing authority through this operation has been achieved, and there is no need to carry out similar large-scale "war on drugs" in the future, and should return to the regular mode of drug enforcement. It should be noted that the "Davao model" is not necessarily applicable to the entire Philippines, and that the Philippines needs a more mature and modern form of governance after the "war on drugs".