It seems logical to assume that with the change of administration and with the architects of “Oplan Double Barrel”…

It seems logical to assume that with the change of administration and with the architects of “Oplan Double Barrel” effectively out of commission, so too would the command memorandum circular that instructed government operatives to “neutralize” suspected drug users and peddlers issued 10 years ago. The 2016 police memo outlined former President Rodrigo Duterte’s drug war policy and was implemented by then police chief, now senator, Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa.

Duterte is awaiting trial for crimes against humanity at The Hague, while Dela Rosa remains in hiding over an arrest warrant for similar charges from the International Criminal Court (ICC).

The term “neutralize,” according to witness testimonies heard in ICC proceedings, was a euphemism for “kill,” and became the trigger for the wave of extrajudicial killings (EJK) under the previous administration. Rights watchdogs have described the memo circular as an open-ended “permission to kill.” As many as 30,000 are believed to have been “neutralized” under that police memo.

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Last week, families of drug war victims petitioned the Supreme Court to nullify the memorandum and declare the drug war framework unconstitutional. Without being revoked by successive administrations, Duterte’s memo on drug suspects remains legally active in the books and “in effect,” the petitioners pointed out.

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Working judicial system

In their manifestation and urgent motion for resolution, the petitioners asked the court to declare Oplan Double Barrel as “unconstitutional, invalid, illegal and unenforceable.”

The challenged “war on drugs issuances continue to form part of the existing regulatory framework governing police operations,” the petition stated. “The unrevoked issuances can still be used by police officers as sources of dubious rules for their operations and invoked as basis of legal defense in the event of fatality occurrences reminiscent of the drug war years,” they added.

Represented by lawyers Joel Butuyan and Gilbert Andres of CenterLaw Philippines, the petitioners noted that the Philippine National Police is “not doing anything to withdraw” the memorandum. “If similar incidents happen again, [the police] may still use Double Barrel to justify their operations,” Butuyan said.

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The rights lawyers also sought judicial protection for families of EJK victims, noting that a high court resolution on their petitions would “lend credence to the assertion that the Philippines has a working judicial system” ensuring the protection of its citizens.

They pointed out the rising incidence of “systematic disinformation, ‘fake’ news, propaganda and other forms of harassment online as well as physical intimidation targeting these families” amid the start of Duterte’s trial before the ICC.

A decade of grief

In a separate statement, Butuyan and Andres said the families of drug war victims “are left commemorating a decade of grief, loss and unaddressed systemic violence.”

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A similar appeal was lodged by Akbayan party list Rep. Jose Manuel “Chel” Diokno in September 2024, when he urged House lawmakers during hearings on Duterte’s drug war to also focus on the police circular that underpins EJK.

Indeed, the volatile political climate triggered not only by Duterte’s prosecution but also the ongoing impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte makes it imperative for the high court “to acknowledge that executive transitions do not absolve the state of judicial review.”

Given the less than lustrous record of police operatives, the huge resources of Duterte allies, and the far-reaching influence of powerful personalities supportive of the bloody war on drugs, the circular memo becomes a handy weapon they can wield to silence critical voices that could imperil their political fortunes under a continuing Duterte dispensation.

The toxic culture bred by the Duterte administration remains in place and quashes dissent wherever it is found.

Overdue reckoning

That the police memo abets EJKs is reason enough for the high court to revoke it, if only to protect a vulnerable sector, maintain public interest under a law-abiding regime, and effectively bar a repeat of such brazen and officially sanctioned murders.

By formally resolving the case, the petitioners pointed out, the Supreme Court can authoritatively demonstrate the integrity of domestic remedies.

“Only through such a definitive ruling can this High Court fully discharge its sacred mandate, vindicate the Constitution, and ensure that never again shall the fundamental rights to life, liberty, and security of every Filipino be sacrificed at the altar of violent and oppressive governance,” the CenterLaw lawyers asserted.

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Duterte’s ICC trial and the impeachment proceedings against the Vice President should only be the start of an overdue reckoning over their past crimes and transgressions. The Supreme Court’s revocation of their unlawful issuances should be the final nail sealing such impunity, making sure it remains buried as just a shameful chapter in recent history.