[OPINION] How to recover from mayhem Duterte inflicted on justice system?

At the height of Duterte’s war on drugs, the criminal justice system was viewed as weak, inefficient, and corrupt. The police could not be trusted; they allegedly used their investigative and arrest powers to extort money from ordinary people. The police and other law enforcement agencies were seen as “protectors” of drug syndicates.

The prosecution and the courts, on the other hand, were viewed as too slow and inefficient. Trial proceedings often took several years. Thus, only the rich, powerful, and well-connected were portrayed as having access to justice. Wealthy individuals could secure bail even when charged with serious offenses, while poor people languished in jail even for minor offenses.

The correctional system was equally portrayed as a failure. Jails and prisons were extremely overcrowded. Inmates had to rely on their own resources from the outside to survive. A mayores system emerged to compensate for the lack of custodial staff. Inmate gangs became essential in mediating conflicts and managing the day-to-day needs of the facilities. In the process, inmates gained access to amenities such as cell phones. In partnership with corrupt guards, drug use and the drug trade proliferated inside some of the largest jails and prisons. As a result, inmates became more hardened criminals, learning criminogenic trades while in prison. Upon release, they struggled to reintegrate as responsible citizens.

Justifying draconian policy

It was this state of affairs that then-president Rodrigo Duterte railed against to justify his draconian policy on the war against drugs and criminality.

But instead of first reforming the police to make them more professional and capable of performing their duties effectively, he instead turned them into his personal henchmen. Guided by his singular belief that he was doing the right thing for the country, he unleashed the same corrupt police force to target drug addicts. Worse, he gave them complete authority to trample on the human rights of suspects, bypass due process, and provoke suspects to fight back — effectively giving the police a license to kill.

Instead of instilling professional discipline in the police, Duterte instituted a reward system where killers were promoted and given greater influence.

Duterte supporters and fanatics endorsed this line of thinking. They became legally cynical, believing it was acceptable to kill drug addicts since the traditional justice system was unlikely to hold offenders accountable. They dismissed the rule of law as a mere technicality exploited by the rich and powerful. They reduced human rights to a ploy designed to protect offenders. They mocked court procedures like due process and equal protection as mere tactics to delay punishments. As Duterte desired, they demanded quick, deadly punishments.

Thus, while Duterte and his supporters fully understood the weaknesses and inequities of the justice system, they did nothing to improve it. Worse, they exploited the same corrupt, unprofessional system to wage a bloody drug war. Consequently, this magnified how the corrupt system preyed on the Filipino people. Only poor drug addicts — the naka-tsinelas — were killed. The killings of drug lords were selective, and those who maintained ties to the Duterte regime remained largely untouched.

Most tragically, since addressing the root causes of drug addiction was never part of Duterte’s agenda, the drug problem worsened after his murderous reign.

Irony of ironies

Ironically, now that Duterte is detained on charges of crimes against humanity before the International Criminal Court (ICC), his supporters claim that the Philippine criminal justice system is functioning effectively — arguing that he should be tried locally. They now assert that the police system works and that if evidence of his crimes exists, the victims of the drug war should file cases with local authorities. They have conveniently forgotten how Duterte himself ordered the police to destroy any evidence that could incriminate them.

Duterte’s supporters now claim that the court system is effective and that local judges — not foreigners who supposedly know nothing about the Philippine justice system — should decide his guilt. They have conveniently forgotten how Duterte and his allies intimidated actors in the criminal justice system by publicly including their names in the “Matrix,” or list of supposed drug coddlers.

There is still much to be done to improve the Philippine criminal justice system. The police must be professionalized. The disposition of cases must be expedited. Jail and prison overcrowding must be addressed. Alternatives to detention and incarceration must be introduced. Best practices in risk assessments and rehabilitation must also be adopted.

But more importantly, Duterte must be held accountable for the brutal drug war and the crimes against humanity that he unleashed upon the Filipino people. His supporters may argue that his intentions were good — that he acted to protect the country. Perhaps. But he pursued his goals in a way that destroyed the foundations of the justice system. He undermined the rule of law, disregarded due process, and rejected human rights.

If the Philippines is to recover from the mayhem Duterte inflicted on its criminal justice system, that process must begin with holding him accountable at the ICC. – Rappler.com

Raymund E. Narag, PhD is an Associate Professor in Criminology and Criminal Justice at the School of Justice and Public Safety, Southern Illinois University, Carbondale.