Thousands march against Duterte's war on drugs

Filipino Catholics condemn a 'spreading culture of violence' as the president's anti-drug campaign kills thousands.

Luis Antonio Tagle, Catholic leader of Manila, said violence cannot be the answer to the country's drug problem [Reuters]

Thousands of Catholics have gathered in the Philippine capital in a "show of force" to protest extrajudicial killings being carried out under the banner of President Rodrigo Duterte's war on drugs.

The rally, dubbed the "Walk for Life", was attended by 20,000 people, organisers said. Manila police estimated the crowd at 10,000.

At the biggest rally yet against the killings, members of one of the nation's oldest and most powerful institutions prayed and sang hymns as they marched before dawn on Saturday, to condemn a "spreading culture of violence".

More than 7,000 people have died since Duterte took office almost eight months ago and ordered an unprecedented crime war that has drawn global criticism for alleged human rights abuses.

The move, however, has been popular with many in the mainly Catholic nation.

"We have to stand up. Somehow this is already a show of force by the faithful that they don't like these extrajudicial killings," Manila bishop Broderick Pabillo told AFP news agency before addressing the crowd.

"I am alarmed and angry at what's happening because this is something that is regressive. It does not show our humanity."

The demonstrators also condemned legislation restoring the death penalty for drug-related crimes and other offences.

Duterte, 71, has attacked the Church as being "full of sh*t" and "the most hypocritical institution" for speaking out against a campaign that he says would save generations of Filipinos from the drug menace.

About 80 percent of the 100 million Filipinos are Catholic.

url: http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2017/02/thousands-march-duterte-war-drugs-170218034827033.html