The Philippine drug war: A state-led campaign of violence or a necessary public safety measure?

History · Published 3 October 2026 Swipe more like this →

In short: Initiated by President Rodrigo Duterte in 2016, the Philippine drug war transformed the nation’s streets into a battleground. While the government framed the campaign as a vital effort to prevent a narco-state, critics and human rights organizations allege it facilitated thousands of extrajudicial killings, often under the guise of police self-defense.

Launched on June 30, 2016, the Philippine drug war was the cornerstone of Rodrigo Duterte’s presidency. The campaign, formalized through Project Double Barrel, encouraged police to adopt aggressive tactics, with Duterte publicly urging citizens and law enforcement to kill drug suspects. By 2022, official government tallies reported 6,252 deaths during anti-drug operations, though human rights groups and academics estimate the true toll ranges from 12,000 to 30,000. These operations were frequently marked by reports of staged crime scenes, where police allegedly planted weapons and drugs to justify the deaths of unarmed individuals.

The campaign’s legitimacy was heavily contested from its inception. Duterte justified the violence by citing the Philippines' risk of becoming a narco-state, yet official data from the Dangerous Drugs Board indicated that only 1.8 million Filipinos used illegal drugs in 2015, a figure far lower than the millions Duterte claimed. Critics, including the late Senator Leila de Lima, argued that the campaign was less about public health and more about consolidating power. Investigations by the Senate and international bodies like the International Criminal Court (ICC) scrutinized the existence of state-sponsored death squads, such as the alleged Davao Death Squad, which had been linked to Duterte during his time as mayor.

The legacy of the drug war remains a point of intense legal and political reckoning. In 2024, congressional inquiries alleged that the campaign served as a front for a Davao City-based drug syndicate to eliminate competition. By March 11, 2025, the situation culminated in Duterte’s arrest following an ICC warrant for crimes against humanity, leading to his extradition to The Hague. While his successor, Bongbong Marcos, pledged to shift the focus toward rehabilitation and prevention, the Dahas Project reported hundreds of drug-related deaths continuing into the Marcos administration, highlighting the deep-seated nature of the violence that has long plagued the Philippine justice system.

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