Statement on the President’s one year in office
President Marcos Jr. reached his one year mark in office without substantially addressing the human rights crises he inherited from the Duterte government, nor has he taken meaningful steps to exact accountability for continuing human rights violations and corporate led human rights abuses against the Filipino people.
Despite official pronouncements of a “humane” approach to the war on drugs, the PNP Memorandum on Tokhang remains in effect, and the killings continue with minimal effort at investigation and prosecution. The government refused to cooperate with the International Criminal Court despite the absence of genuine domestic mechanisms to address gross impunity for human rights violations perpetrated in this war.
Marcos Jr. has doubled down on neo-liberal, corporate-led development frameworks despite the chronic crises they have produced in our economy, the environment and the conflicts in our communities. Haphazard and palliative solutions to the loss of jobs and livelihood along with constant inflation marked the shortsightedness of Marcos’ governance, and increased the people’s social and economic insecurity. The President prioritized the enactment of the Maharlika Investment Fund amid widespread criticism and warnings from economic experts, including the threat of increased foreign debt.
The Marcos government continues to implement Duterte’s destructive and deadly policies with grave impacts on the people’s lives and livelihoods. None of the President’s steps during his first year in office inspired hope of a clean break from Duterte, nor a chance of recovering from the ills he has brought to the country.