MArch 11 was a day of calculation. Freshly out of a plane at Manila International Airport, former Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte was flanked and held under an arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court for alleged crimes against humanity.
“It is deeply personal for me,” said former Philippine Leila senator from Lima, a criticism of Duterte since her appearance of drug -related charges that have imprisoned her for almost seven years, in a statement. Randy Delos Santos, the uncle of a teenager killed in police anti-drug operations in Manila in August 2017, the Associated Press told that it was “a great day long awaited for justice”.
Duterte supervised a repression against illicit drugs for more than two decades, first as mayor of Davao City, then as a Philippin president from 2016 to 2022. The campaign led to 30,000 deaths, most of them poor Philippins.
The arrest of Duterte – and the cooperation of the administration as Ferdinand Marcos Jr. in IT – also marks a turning point in the country’s policy.
“In the short term, it is the beginning of the end of the Duterte’s political dynasty,” explains Jean Encinas-Franco, professor of political science at the University of the Philippines.
Nicknamed “Trump of Asia” for his rhetoric and unorthodox governance, Duterte was elected by a landslide almost a decade ago on the promise of relentless repression against crime.
By taking office, he made his promise faithful with his “war against drugs”. He also launched misogynist tirades and repressed criticism and press freedom.
While his repression caused indignation worldwide, Duterte and his brand of politics remained popular at home even after leaving his duties. His daughter Sara Duterte-Carpio, leading to her family name, was elected vice-president in 2022 in a landslide victory alongside President Marcos Jr., himself the son of a former dictator who ruled the Philippines from 1965 to 1986.
But the two families came across a power struggle. An WR Numero Research survey shows that Duterte-Carpio is among the favorite candidates in the presidential elections due in 2028, and the elder Duterte seeks to recover his post as mayor of the city of Davao during the mid-term elections in May.
Meanwhile, the Patriarch of Duterte and President Marcos exchanged allegations of drug use. The former president also accused his successor of turning the Philippines towards a dictatorship. Last November, Vice-President Duterte-Carpio even publicly threatened to have Marcos murdered.
The comments, as well as other allegations against Duterte-Carpio, prompted the House of Representatives, many of whom are Marcos allies, to dismiss it last month.
Marcos had previously spoken about the refusal to cooperate with the ICC on his probe against Duterte. But in January, the Marcos administration said it “would respond favorably” if the ICC requests an interpol arrest warrant.
Richard Heydarian, political analyst based in Manila and principal speaker at the University of the Philippines, told Time that the Marcos administration “cut off the snake” with the arrest, after months of adoption of a less conflicting approach with the family. He adds that if Duterte is sent to The Hague, this would signal to the Marcos allies to the Senate to accelerate the procedure for indictment against Duterte-Carpio.
For political analyst Antonio Contreras, it is too early to say how Duterte’s arrest will affect the next local elections or the imminent presidential competition in 2028. But the “feeling of invincibility before that [Duterte] Can no longer be held responsible, “he says,” is now being reversed. »»
