Undas 2026: Drug war victims’ kin hopeful as Duterte’s day in court nears

MANILA — Families of “drug war” victims in the Philippines are marking this year’s All Souls Day with a renewed sense of hope, as former President Rodrigo Duterte faces trial before the International Criminal Court over his brutal anti-narcotics campaign. 

Duterte’s trial for three counts of crimes against humanity on November 30 over police anti-drug operations he ordered as Davao City mayor in the southern Philippines and later as president. 

Dahlia Cuartero remembered Jesus III as a diligent son who helped send his siblings to school. The family’s breadwinner was killed in a buy-bust operation in Bulacan province in 2019. 

“Sasalubungin namin ang Undas na masaya dahil ito na,” she said. “Mag-uumpisa na ang trial para sa hustisya sa aming mga pamilya.”

(We are welcoming All Souls’ Day with joy because this is it. The trial is finally starting that would bring justice to our families.)

Cuartero said many families of “Tokhang” victims have lost hope in the Philippine justice system and see the ICC as their remaining avenue for recourse. 

She also rejected claims by Duterte’s supporters that victims’ families were paid to speak about their ordeal. 

“Kami ang totoong biktima,” Cuartero added. “Tinataya namin ang buhay namin para humarap sa media para lang mabigyan ng hustisya ang aming mga pamilya.”

(We are the real victims. We risk our lives speaking to the media just so our families can get justice.)

Llore Pasco, who lost her two sons to the drug war, urged President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to hand over Sen. Ronald dela Rosa to the ICC. 

As the nation’s top cop during the early Duterte years, Dela Rosa enforced the police operations that human rights groups estimate killed thousands. 

ICC prosecutors named Dela Rosa as among the eight “co-perpetrators” in Duterte’s case. Philippine authorities are searching for him with a P50 million *($784,000) bounty on his head. 

“Dapat talagang gumawa siya ng paraan kung paano tugisin at mahuli si Bato para maisunod na rin siya doon sa ICC,” said Pasco of Marcos. 

(He must find a way to track down and arrest Bato so he be sent to the ICC next.)

Kristina Conti, an accredited lawyer by the ICC, said seeking justice in the Philippines remains costly for the poor, who make up most drug war victims. 

“Sa nanay na rin nanggaling na ‘Attorney, ano ba ‘yang hustisya na ‘yan, hindi namin afford ‘yan,” she said. “Alam nila na ang hustisya … kahit dapat kayang abutin ng lahat, kailangan mo magbayad ng abogado.”

(It was a mother who said, ‘Attorney, what is this justice? We can’t afford it. They know justice should be accessible to everyone, but you have to pay for a lawyer.)

Beyond legal fees, Conti said even basic logistics such as bringing witnesses to court put a heavy financial burden on grieving families. 

“Kung pakikusapan mo ang kapitbahay mo na pumunta sa korte at sabihin kung ano ang nalalaman niya tungkol sa pagpatay ng kaanak mo, papamasahian [at] papakainin mo ‘yan,” she added.

(If you ask your neighbor to go to court and speak about what they know regarding your relative’s killing, you have to cover their transportation and meals.)

The lawyer who is among those representing victims at the ICC said such factors are the root of frustration among families with the Philippine justice system.

Proceedings against Duterte will open on Nov. 30 in The Hague, in a first for a former Southeast Asian head of state. Back home, only five drug war cases have led to the conviction of nine policemen.

In April, the international monitor Human Rights Watch said Duterte’s trial is a strong warning that accountability will catch up to those accused of extrajudicial killings.