Netizens react to Duterte’s ‘shoot looters’ order

MANILA, Philippines – His means of fighting crime in his highly urbanized city have been largely met with approval, and then some criticism. Who would have thought Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte would be as polarizing in the process of bringing help to typhoon-hit Visayas?

On November 11, Duterte sent a humanitarian team to Maasin in Southern Leyte, and in Tacloban in Leyte. He, with P7 million in cash, took a chopper. His 55-man contingent of health professionals and rescuers bringing medicines and other relief goods travelled by land, their convoy escorted by security forces.

Word of people attacking and looting relief trucks, however, had gone around by this time, leading him to order the convoy’s security escorts: if looters would try to flag you down, shoot them. 

“Sabihin sa mga tao na pumapara na, ‘Wag galawin ito, kasi sinabi ni Mayor Duterte na kapag ginalaw ito barilin ko kayo.’ Eh anarchy eh,” Duterte said. (I instructed them to tell people who will try to flag them down, ‘Don’t touch these goods, because Mayor Duterte said that if you try to, we should shoot you.’ That’s what you do when there’s anarchy.)

Duterte has a history of draconian rule in Davao City, and is open about having criminals hunted down and shot. Despite being asked by the Commission on Human Rights (CHR) to follow the rule of law, Duterte sticks to his method of antagonizing criminals, generating vehement supporters and critics alike. 

Even Duterte, however, was shocked by the extent of the damage, and showed his softer side when he delivered an interview on the state of Tacloban in near tears. 

“Di ko malaman kung iiyak ako (I do not know if I have to cry)…I cannot shout in anger because you cannot be mad at anybody there,” he said, voice cracking. 

Nonetheless, his “shoot looters” order is quite a controversial statement, and netizens were quick to react. Here’s a sampling of their sentiments:

Looting has worsened since. Apart from more locals violently raiding shops in Tacloban for food and water, armed insurgents from the New People’s Army (NPA) have even attacked aid convoys in Sorsogon for their goods. Soldiers have killed two of these rebels, and wounded one. 

In light of this, what’s your take on Duterte’s order? Does his approach make sense more than ever, or is it still the wrong way to go? Share your thoughts in the comments! – Rappler.com