HOMETOWN SENTIMENT At least 1,000 supporters of former President Rodrigo Duterte gather at Rizal Park in his hometown of Davao City to express indignation over his arrest on Tuesday after arriving from Hong Kong. 鈥擩oselle R. Badilla
DAVAO CITY, Philippines 鈥� Die-hard supporters of former President Rodrigo Duterte in Mindanao staged protest actions on Tuesday to express indignation over his arrest through a warrant from the International Criminal Court (ICC) for crimes against humanity in relation to his administration鈥檚 bloody war on drugs.
In Davao City, Duterte鈥檚 hometown, his supporters tried to muster a crowd as they called on barangay officials and supporters to gather at Rizal Park for a candle-lighting activity in support of the former Philippine leader.
Supporters started trickling in at noon, bringing small placards, which read, 鈥淲e stand for FPRRD,鈥� referring to the former president, while the sound system repeatedly played Freddie Aguilar鈥檚 鈥淎ng Bayan kong Pilipinas.鈥� As of 5 p.m., the crowd at the park had reached over 1,000 with Duterte adviser Leoncio Evasco Jr. joining them.
READ: Duterte arrest shows int鈥檒 community won鈥檛 tolerate abuses 鈥� solons
In Cagayan de Oro City, over 200 protesters gathered at Gaston Park near City Hall to support the former president. A similar mobilization happened in Iligan City.
Former Gabriela Rep. Luz Ilagan, who served as social welfare undersecretary under the Duterte administration, likened the former President鈥檚 situation to the arrest of her husband, the late human rights lawyer Larry Ilagan, during the time of the late former President Ferdinand Marcos Sr., father and namesake of incumbent President Marcos.
鈥淚t sends shivers down my spine because it reminds me of how my late husband, Attorney Ilagan, was illegally arrested in 1985 when Marcos Sr. was the president,鈥� Ilagan said. 鈥淭he sheer audacity, the naked abuse of power, the shameless disrespect for a former president of the land and the pathetic display of ignorance and abuse of authority, bring to mind that history is repeating itself,鈥� she added.
Candle-lighting
When asked about the victims of Duterte鈥檚 drug war, she asked back, 鈥淲hat about the hapless victims of the addicts who raped their own sisters, brutally killed their own mothers and members of their families, who committed atrocities that only deranged minds can carry out? Bakit nagkaroon din tayo ng convenient amnesia about the killings done by addicts? If we must bring justice, then it should not be one-sided,鈥� she said.
Still, when asked about 17-year-old Kian delos Santos, who became the face of innocent bystanders in Duterte鈥檚 drug war, Ilagan said: 鈥淚n any war, there will always be victims and renegades who abuse their authority. Kaya, there are no winners. Both sides suffer.鈥�
A group of Davao City councilors also lit candles around noon after hearing about Duterte鈥檚 arrest.
鈥淚t鈥檚 very sad that they do this great injustice to our former President. The more they persecute him, the more that the people love him. We must stand by Tatay Digong in these dark hours as he stood for us and fought for us to defend the Filipino people against the onslaught of criminality brought about by illegal drugs,鈥� said Councilor Pilar Braga.
Most of the crowd viewed Duterte鈥檚 arrest mainly as a political consequence following the breakdown of the unity ticket between the Marcos administration and the Duterte family.
鈥淪ad day for the country. God bless the Philippines,鈥� said businessman Art Milan, private sector representative and co-chair at the Regional Development Council in Davao region.
Hoping for conviction
Mayor Sebastian Duterte, the former President鈥檚 son, also took to social media to question the arrest, saying the ICC warrant did not have 鈥渏urisdiction in this country.鈥� He described Marcos to be 鈥渇antasizing that this scenario would materialize.鈥�
鈥淭hey are insisting that PRRD (Duterte) get on a plane to who knows where using an ICC warrant which does not have jurisdiction in this country. Clowns behaving like clowns again. This has to end,鈥� the mayor said.
But some community leaders in Mindanao also felt vindicated and expressed hope for possible conviction of Duterte, whose war on drugs killed thousands of suspected drug users and even some innocent bystanders, like Delos Santos and several others.
鈥淗e was not arrested for nothing. His arrest was based on the complaints of the victims and families of the drug war victims,鈥� said Dr. Jean Lindo, chair of Gabriela Southern Mindanao.
鈥淸Duterte] has a battery of lawyers to defend him; at least, he was not tokhanged then later 鈥� deal with nanlaban narratives,鈥� Lindo added.
She was referring to tokhang from the Cebuano word toktok-hangyo (knock and plead), a common pattern of operation when law enforcement authorities would knock on the doors of suspected drug addicts, seize suspects who would later turn up dead, with police saying they fought back (nanlaban) to justify the killing.
Lindo also pointed out that at least, Duterte had the chance to defend himself unlike most of the drug war victims, including minors, who were executed without due process of law.