MANILA (Reuters) - Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte said on Sunday he needed six

more months for his war on drugs, saying he only realized how bad the country's narcotics
problem was after taking office over two months ago.
Duterte, a former crime-busting mayor of the southern city of Davao, won the presidency
in May promising to suppress crime and wipe out drugs and drug dealers in three to six
months.
More than 3,500 people - or about 47 per day - have been killed in the past 10 weeks in
connection with the illegal drugs trade, nearly two thirds by unknown assailants and the
rest in legitimate police operations, according to local police.
Though popular at home, Duterte's sometimes violent anti-drug rhetoric and the
thousands of killings have alarmed rights groups and sparked the concern of the United
States, a former colonial power and close ally, and the United Nations.
Duterte has dismissed criticism of his war on drugs, including allegations made by rights
groups at home and abroad of extrajudicial killings.
New York-based Human Rights Watch (HRW) last week said the U.N. should look into the
drugs war and be allowed to interview witnesses.
The biggest problem is posed by the distribution and use of locally made
methamphetamine, known as 'shabu'.
"I did not realize how severe and how serious the problem of drug menace in this republic
was until I became president," Duterte said in a media briefing in Davao.
He said there were "hundreds of thousands of people already in the drug business" now,
some of them working in government.
"We would need time to put everything in order. Give me a little extension, maybe of
another six months," he said.
Early this month Duterte said "plenty will be killed until the last pusher is out of the
streets."
But on Sunday he said "even if I wanted to, I cannot kill them all because the last report
would be this thick," referring to a new, not yet published list of mostly public officials
linked to illegal drug trade.
In two previous lists, Duterte identified military and police officials, lawmakers and judges
with alleged connections to the drug trade.

The new list includes more elected government officials such as village chiefs or
"barangay captains", Duterte said. He did not say when the names would be made public
but that they had been "verified".
He also said he supported calls to postpone the barangay elections, to be held in October,
because drug money could be used to ensure victory of those who connive with drug
dealers.
"From the looks of it, it's the government already doing the operation (of illegal drugs).
They (the foreign critics) just don't realize it because it's not their country," he said.

MANILA, Philippines Crime and drugs are social ills that need to be stamped out, say
Rodrigo Duterte and Alan Peter Cayetano as they seek the two highest positions in the
land in 2016.
Duterte used a peace and order platform before, when he first ran for Davao City mayor
in 1988. He later earned a reputation for his iron-fisted approach to criminality. Davao
City now enjoys a state-of-the-art crime response center and was named 9th safest
city in the world in 2015.
On Tuesday, January 4, Cayetano announced that their tandem would push for an
increase in police salaries to P75,000 to P100,000 5 times the current wage of the
lowest-ranking police officer and even more than the salary of the PNP chief.
Theirs is the only tandem that highlights the fight against criminality and drugs as a
major part of their platform.
Does the current state of crime and drugs in the Philippines warrant such attention?
Rappler takes a look at recent statistics.
Criminality
The number of reported crimes has been rising, while the ability of the police to solve
crimes has decreased.
The PNP however had previously explained that the spike in statistics did not
necessarily represent a worsening peace and order situation. One reason for it could be
the underreporting by local police units in previous years.

In 2015, for instance, the number of reported crimes soared by 46% in the first 5 months
compared to the same period the previous year, according to the Philippine National
Police (PNP).
The same trend was observed in 2014. By the end of the first 5 months of that year,
crime incidents rose by 18% compared to 2013 numbers.
For the entire 2014, the total number of reported crimes was 1.2 million, up from 1
million in 2013. In 2012, only 218,000 crimes were reported.
This is alarmingly low compared to crime solution efficiency rates around a decade ago.
In 2004 and 2005, 90% and 89% of reported crimes were solved in those years,
respectively, according to a GMA News Online report.
Some of the more shocking crimes in recent years include mall shootings, media
killings, and rape incidents of young girls and students. Cybersex dens in different parts
of the country also proliferated.

Policemen have been arrested over crimes like running a secret prison in
Laguna to torture inmates, aiding in high-profile murders, and drug trafficking.

Drugs
Around one-fifth of barangays (or villages) in the Philippines have drug-related
cases, according to February 2015 data from the Philippine Drug Enforcement
Agency (PDEA).
Metro Manila is the region most affected by drugs with 92% of its barangays
having drug-related cases.
Methamphetamine hydrochloride, or shabu, is the most used illegal drug in the
country, followed by cannabis or marijuana.
In 2014, 89% of drug seizures involved shabu while 8.9% involved marijuana,
according to PDEA. Cocaine, ephedrine, and ecstasy constituted the rest of the
confiscations.
Back in 2012, The United Nations World Drug Report said the Philippines has
thehighest rate of shabu use in East Asia.

Its mostly ethnic Chinese syndicates that organize and finance the trafficking of
shabu in the Philippines, according to the US State department report on
international drugs in 2012.
Because of its geographic location, the Philippines has become a major hub for
the drug in Southeast Asia. This has contributed to more incidents of Filipinos
getting arrested in other countries for transporting or selling shabu.
Shabu is usually brought into the country from Japan, China, and Korea but it is
also grown domestically in meth labs.
The drug problem was recognized even by the Catholic Bishops' Conference of
the Philippines when it released a pastoral letter last July 2015 focusing on drug
addiction in the country.
Entitled Addiction, freedom, and disciples, the letter pointed out how shabu or
the poor mans cocaine has become daringly ubiquitous, oftentimes peddled
openly in parks, bars, and street corners.
The Aquino administration has made some progress in tackling the shabu
problem. In 2012, government reported the decline of industrial-size meth labs.
The US State department recognized the governments efforts, saying they led to
a 45% increase in anti-drug operations. Rappler.com
Do you feel strongly about the state of crime and drugs in the Philippines? How
do you think government should deal with the situation? Let us know by
commenting below.
Crime scene image from Shutterstock
Drug syringe image from Shutterstock

Statistics for Drug Problems in the Philippines

A US government report in 2009 concluded that illegal drug use was a significant problem in the
Philippines due to corruption and poor law enforcement. There was particular concern expressed
about the amount of methamphetamine (shabu) and cannabis production in the area. Drug addiction
appears to be on the rise in the Philippines. There are believed to be as many as 6.7 million drug
abusers according to figures from 2004- this is a dramatic increase from 1972 when there was only
believed to have been around 20,000 drug users in the Philippines. The drug that is most abused in

the Philippines continues to be Alcohol they are the second highest consumers of alcoholic drinks
in South East Asia.

Most Commonly Abused Drugs in the Philippines

The most commonly abused drugs in the Philippines include:
* Alcohol..
* Marijuana
* Heroin
* Cocaine
* Methamphetamine (locally known as Shabu)
* Inhalants such as nitrates and gasoline. These can be a cheap way for people to get high.
* Opium
* Ecstasy (MDMA)

Concerns for Shabu Abuse

One of the most abused drugs in the Philippines is a local type of methamphetamine mixed with caffeine
known as Shabu. This stimulant is believed to be the drug of choice for 90% of the Philippines illegal
substance users. This is a powerfully addictive drug that can cause people to have intense hallucinations
and become extremely paranoid. Some users of this drug have even jumped off high rise buildings
because they believed they could fly. Shabu didnt arrive in the Philippines until the mid eighties, but it
soon became hugely popular among drug users. Methamphetamine causes feelings of euphoria and the
user feels full of energy.

Problems Related to Drug Addiction

Drug abuse leads to many problems such as:
* The individual does not have to be abusing a substance like Shabu long before they become addicted.
* Those individuals who become addicted can become obsessed with their habit. This means that
everything else in their life will take second place.
* The individuals behavior will change. They may become physically violent or engage in other types of
bad behavior.
* Those who abuse these drugs can struggle to keep down a job. They may become unemployable.
* Young people who use these substances will be unable to perform well in school or college. This means
that they will be limiting their future opportunities.
* When drug users run out of money to feed their habit they will be tempted to turn to crime. This may
mean stealing from family and friends or from complete strangers.
* Many addicts fall into a life of crime and eventually end up in prison or worse.
* If the drug addict is unable to escape this behavior it is highly likely to lead to their death. This individual
will shorten their lifespan as a result of their behavior.
* Illegal drug users run the risk of overdose. It can be difficult to assess the strength of illegal drugs, and it

can be similar to playing a game of Russian roulette every time the addict uses these substances it is
even possible for people to die of an overdose after only trying illegal drugs one time.

Cost of Drug Addiction in the Philippines

The cost of drug addiction is high for the Philippines and it involves:
* A great deal of domestic violence is associated with drug abuse.
* A huge proportion of criminal acts are committed by individuals who are trying to satisfy their drug habit.
* The economy suffers because drug users become less productive in their jobs or they become unable to
work completely.
* The government needs to spend large amounts of money on tackling drug problems. The resources
used by law enforcement alone are a drain.
* Money that could be spent to improve the life of a family is wasted because one member is a drug
addict. It can lead to a situation where the rest of the family is living in poverty while one of them wastes
thousands of pesos each week on drugs.
* A criminal underworld had developed in order to take advantage of the desire for these illegal
substances. The money made from selling drugs is used to finance other criminal acts as well as
terrorism.
* Drug addict can destroy communities. It can lead to a situation where people are afraid to leave their
homes because of fear of crime.
* The individual who falls into drug addiction can lose everything including their own self respect. This
miserable life is a waste of human potential.

Treatment for Drug Addiction in the Philippines

There are a number of treatment options available to people in the Philippines who need help including:
* Narcotics Anonymous is a twelve step program that supports the individual to escape their addictions.
This fellowship is not just focused on stopping the drug use but also on building a life worth living.
* There are a number of drug rehabilitation facilities in the Philippines including Serenity at the Quarry.
* It is becoming more common for Filipinos to go abroad to seek the most effective treatment for their
addictions. Drug and Alcohol Rehab Asia is based in Thailand and is considered to be one of the leading
rehab in Asia.
MANILA, Philippines - The crackdown on illegal drugs wont stop until the last drug personality is
punished, President Rodrigo Duterte said Monday as he stressed that human rights should not be used to
protect wrongdoers.
During his first State of the Nation Address (SONA), Duterte also called on law enforcers to intensify their
efforts against narcotics and criminality, assuring them of protection in case they face charges for doing
their duty.
"There will be no let-up in this campaign. Double your efforts. Triple them, if need be. We will not stop
until the last drug lord, the last financier and the last pusher have surrendered or put behind bars or below
the ground if they so wish," the president said.

To our police officers and other officials, do your job and you will have the unwavering support of the
Office of the President. I will be with you all the way. Abuse your authority and there will be hell to pay, he
added.
Duterte, whose anti-drug campaign has been linked to the recent spate of killings of suspected drug
personalities, said he is ready to stake his honor, his life and the presidency for the quest.
Human rights must work to uplift human dignity. But human rights cannot be used as a shield or an
excuse to destroy the country --- your country and my country, he added.
Duterte, who promised to suppress crime and drugs within six months, said he is ready to kill anyone who
destroys the youth and the country with illegal drugs. He also vowed to wage a bloody and ruthless
campaign against the narcotics trade, alarming human rights advocates who are worried that it could lead
to extralegal killings.
Latest police data showed that 239 drug suspects were killed in law enforcement operations as of July 22.
A total of 120,038 drug pushers and users, meanwhile, have surrendered to authorities.
Duterte called on the police, village chiefs and local executives not to lower their guard in their antinarcotics drive. He also ordered the National Police Commission to hasten the conduct of investigation
and adjudication of administrative cases against police officers involved in criminal and illegal activities.
The DILG (Department of Interior and Local Government) is also directed to strictly monitor how LGUs
(local government units) perform their supervision functions of the police and those found not performing
will be sanctioned including the loss of police deputation from the NAPOLCOM, the president said.
Let me repeat my warning to all: Do not do drugs because you will be the solution to the drug crisis that
has engulfed the nation, he added.
Duterte said he would form an interagency committee on illegal drugs that would integrate efforts and
strengthen the partnership of all stakeholders.
The reservists will be mobilized for information campaign against drug use and the dissemination of
information regarding drug rehabilitation programs being offered by the government, the president said.
We will also prioritize the rehabilitation of drug users. We will increase the number of residential
treatment and rehabilitation facilities in all regions of the country, he added.
The military was also tasked to prepare the use military camps and facilities for drug rehabilitation.
There can never be real, tangible and felt development without making our people feel secure and it is
our duty to uplift the peoples welfare, Duterte said.
.