Rodrigo Duterte: The Politics Of Corruption In The Philippines

The people of the Philippines have recently elected Rodrigo Duterte as their president. Duterte had a very outspoken campaign that focused heavily on ridding the country of corruption. His plans of eradicating this corruption may seem very unorthodox to many and even immoral to others. During his presidency, Duterte aims to abolish drugs at any cost, at the same time breaking ties with the US while strengthening relations with China. Rodrigo Duterte, who served seven terms as the mayor of a town called Davao City, had some success in reducing crime in what was previously known as the murder capital of the Philippines. Since the Philippines is in a prime location for trade, neighboring countries such as Japan, China, and Korea have used this

During his run for the presidency in the Philippines, he was very adamant about his position on crime in the country. Duterte threatened the lives of anyone that was affiliated with drugs and even said “Forget the laws on human rights. If I make it to the presidential palace, I will do just what I did as a mayor. You drug pushers, hold-up men and do nothings … I’ll kill you” (Holmes). Furthermore, a little over seven weeks into his term, almost 1,800 supposed criminals have been killed, roughly 700 of those deaths come from the police doings and the other 1000 deaths were from possible vigilantes or other circumstances that have not been accounted for. However, Duterte isn’t just after the commoners who are wheeling and dealing illegal substances, he is also taking a stand against corrupt cops telling them “Don’t take this as a joke. I’m not making you laugh … son of a bitch, I will kill you” (CNN). While this stance on drugs may eradicate drug dealing from the country, a dilemma concerning the unauthorized killing of the innocent or suspected criminals that were not given a fair trial in court. These unofficial killings have caught the attention of two of the biggest human rights overseers, the United Nations as well as the Catholic

A marine sanctuary at a lagoon within Scarborough Shoal, a reef that had been captured by China in 2012, is planned to be declared by Duterte. The Philippines won a ruling that challenged China’s capture of the shoal which sparked communication between the two countries. Xi Jinping, president of China, said that there was a “favorable environment” at the Shoal, where both countries would claim the territory. Surrounding countries worry that China will build forces on the island. The sea surrounding the shoal also has a problem of overfishing. Scientists proposed that if China were to turn these reefs into military bases then it would endanger some of the important fishing areas. If China put ports on the island, then it could also entice them to fish farther from their mainland which would put a bigger strain on the