In Context Archives | Page 11 of 12

UN Special Rapporteur Visit: Reporting the Non-negotiable Procedures

OVER 6,000 people have fallen since President Duterte’s election. Even before the president was sworn to office, the media began reporting killings of drug suspects or pushers as early as June. In July, local and international communities expressed their criticism of the continued violation of human rights and...

How to Get Away with Machismo: An Easy Pass for Duterte

AS CANDIDATE for the presidency, Rodrigo Duterte was open about his domestic affairs. His complicated marital status includes two families, one with his common-law wife and the other with his first wife who had their marriage annulled. He further admitted to having had two girlfriends at the same...

From Fugitive to Ally: The Missing Story of Misuari’s Return

NUR MISUARI, the country’s foremost Moro rebel who launched the separatist movement in the late ‘60s, is no stranger to the limelight. He has waged war against the government and has been hounded for it. His foray into mainstream politics in the ‘90s and his subsequent removal from the...

The Executive Order on FOI: A Freedom of Exceptions?

TWENTY-NINE (29) years since the first Freedom of Information (FOI) bill was filed, the transparency measure still has not made it to law. Not surprisingly, President Rodrigo Duterte’s executive order (EO) mandating access to information held by agencies in the executive branch was hailed by government officials, by...

Knowing Your Source: Think Before You Click

THINK BEFORE you click. You may be sharing propaganda as truth—and thus, helping to dumb down people who access the Internet and social media. The Internet, as a wide and open platform, provides space for a vast number of websites of dubious reliability, which are nevertheless, widely quoted and...

Duterte’s Hitler Comparison: The President’s Outrageous Mistake

ANOTHER DAY, another outrageous statement—and yet another frantic attempt at damage control. On Sept. 30, President Rodrigo Duterte gained worldwide notoriety anew when he compared himself to Adolf Hitler in his willingness to “slaughter” three million drug addicts. At least, this was how many understood the president’s statements....

Reporting ‘Endo’: Complicated, Confusing

AS PRESIDENTIAL candidate, Rodrigo Duterte vowed to end labor contractualization or “endo,” a practice that prevents workers from attaining the full benefits of regular employment. Duterte’s promise, together with his vow to end crime and drugs, projected his populist stance, helping him win the presidency in the May...

Duterte’s Drug War: Debunking Presumption of Regularity

THE NUMBER of deaths in President Rodrigo Duterte’s war on drugs rises by the day, raising concerns and eliciting criticism not only from some Filipinos but also from lawmakers and human rights advocates both here and abroad. Duterte and Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Director General Ronald dela...

State of Lawless Violence: Media’s Watchdog Role Crucial

MEDIA’S RESPONSIBILITY to provide information and to explain what’s going on has become even more crucial in the context of the recent actions of the Duterte administration that may have an impact on civil liberties. Shortly before 5 a.m. of Sept. 3, President Rodrigo Duterte told a group...

Lowering the Age of Criminal Liability: What to Be Considered?

AMONG THE first bills filed in the House of Representatives of the 17th Congress was House Bill No. 002 of Davao del Norte Rep. Pantaleon Alvarez and Capiz Rep. Fredenil Castro to lower the age of criminal liability from 15 to nine. The measure, according to Alvarez and...