Reporter and filmmaker Patricia Evangelista provides an upfront view of the war on drugs brought by former Filipino President Rodrigo Duterte during his time in office as President as well as Mayor of Davao City in the decades prior to his presidency. Duterte was known for his volatile behavior and inflammatory rhetoric long before his election as President in 2016. His promises to kill drug dealers and addicts were not taken literally during his campaign, but extrajudicial killings of people involved with illegal drugs began on the first day of his presidency. Through her in-depth reporting, Evangelista shows us how Duterte’s orders to kill thousands of drug dealers and addicts were carried out by both police and vigilante groups. Evangelista worked the overnight shift, risking her own safety, going from the site of one killing to another to document the deaths and photograph the bodies. She explores the impact of the killings on the families left behind revealing the tragedy of so many unnecessary deaths. While Duterte denies knowledge of the extrajudicial killings, Evangelista’s deeply researched reporting and use of Duterte’s own statements show that he supported and encouraged them. This is an important record of the Filipino war on drugs.
A version of this review was previously published in Library Journal here.
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