Winston Churchill, the former Prime Minister of Britain once said “You see these dictators on their pedestals, surrounded by the bayonets of their soldiers and the truncheons of their police… yet in their hearts there is unspoken fear. They are afraid of words and thoughts, words spoken abroad, thoughts stirring at home, all the more powerful because forbidden and terrify them.”
These words make a lot of sense after seeing Duterte curl and wimp in utter disbelief after his apprehension for indictment to the International Criminal Court (ICC) for crimes against humanity. Records from human rights groups in Philippines and outside indicate that over 7,000 men and women were murdered on suspicion of being drug users during Duterte’s dark reign of terror. It is regrettable that some of the suspects were killed on mere suspicion, without following up due process and total disregard for the rule of law.
At one point, Duterte bragged that Hitler killed 3 million people and that he would be willing to slaughter three million drug addicts. This showed that the despot loved to smear their blood on his hands rather than introduce, within the law, acceptable strategies to stop drugs from getting into his country. Secondly, the drug addicts deserved to be rehabilitated and not murdered senselessly.
Extermination of human populations is something that must never be bragged about and extrajudicial killings also serve no purpose. It is criminal and leaves behind a trail of pain and suffering to the families and their communities as well.
It was sad that Duterte could liken himself to Hitler, a merciless brute who disorganized humanity and created so much pain on earth. In Africa and elsewhere, the issue of mass killings is rampant and humankind must work together to ensure that such things will completely disappear from the face of the earth.
Duterte should serve as an example to other despots across the world who during their terms killed innocent people and others without due process. Equally those who are currently using the same measures to disregard the rule of law and use shortcuts to murder people must be brought to account for their actions.
Before putting suspects on trial for crimes that are considered grim, the question of death penalty must be revisited. It’s barbaric and all nations must consider dropping this punitive, cruel and torturous vice. While the major principle of dealing with suspected wrongdoers and criminals is rehabilitation, murder and extrajudicial killings negate this fact. Once your life is taken away, there is no room for appeal and incase the facts are later established that your life was taken away by mistake, there can never be a way of remedying it.
The humbling experience by Duterte during his arrest must be a reminder to all despots that today you might be basking in power, calling the shots and doing whatever pleases you, might one day come to haunt you. The tables might turn and those you called dogs become gods, and you, who considered self god, becomes the dog.
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