New York Times releases documentary on Duterte's drug war

Amid criticism from top officials in Malacañang, the New York Times has released a new documentary on the war on drugs in the Philippines under President Rodrigo Duterte.

The documentary called “When a President Says, ‘I’ll Kill You’” by journalists Andrew Glazer and Jeremy Rocklin followed Philippine Daily Inquirer photojournalist Raffy Lerma and the stories he covered with the Manila Police District (MPD). It runs 14 minutes and 51 seconds.

The documentary is the latest in a series of explosive pieces from the newspaper about the Duterte administration. Last week, the New York Times ran a profile on Duterte's early days, while its editorial last Friday called on other nations to put pressure on Duterte amid the rising death toll in the Philippines' war on drugs.

The series has drawn a rebuke from presidential spokesperson Ernesto Abella, who linked the newspaper to alleged ouster plots against Duterte.

“NYT’s very obvious demolition work flies in the face of the very high approval of PPRD enjoys . The newspaper tries to stir global outrage in a nation that welcomes its newfound peace and order,” presidential spokesperson Ernesto Abella said in a statement.

“One can only conclude that certain personalities and politicians have mounted a well funded campaign utilizing hack writers and their ilk in their bid to oust PRRD,” he added.

Aside from following stories of victims and their kin, the documentary also showed footage of protesters against the killings as they chanted, “Rage against tyranny!”

It also shows an interview with Commission on Human Rights (CHR) chairperson Luis Gascon who said that Duterte viewed dissenters like the human rights advocates as obstacles to his drug war.

The documentary did not show any side of the President or the Malacañang on the feature. But it played parts of Duterte’s speeches where he would stress how brutal his war on drugs would be.

The documentary did cover one of the events of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) and Dangerous Drugs Board (DDB).

“Rest assured that the administration is doing this for the future generation,” DDB chairman Benjamin Reyes told Glazer when asked about what he would say to the children who became orphans because of the war on drugs. —Trisha Macas/JST, GMA News