(PNA photo by Joan Bondoc)
The Coalition for People’s Right to Health (CPRH) has strongly rejected Senator Alan Peter Cayetano’s recent claim that the war on drugs is a “pro-life campaign,” calling the framing dangerously misleading and blind to the catastrophic human toll of punitive enforcement.
“Labeling a campaign defined by extrajudicial killings, mass incarceration, and systemic stigma as a moral imperative obscures the reality that these policies have failed to protect life and instead destroyed families, communities, and the nation as a whole,” CPRH said in a statement.
The group stressed that health outcomes are inseparable from socio-economic inequities. Poverty, lack of opportunity, and entrenched stigma, they argued, drive substance use as a survival mechanism or coping response.
“The current punitive approach ignores these root causes, blaming individuals for circumstances created by structural failure,” CPRH added. “We urgently need an alternative strategy grounded in evidence, public health principles, and human rights.”
Inequality and Oppression
CPRH emphasized that punitive drug policies disproportionately harm marginalized groups, perpetuating cycles of poverty and exclusion.
“True equality requires dismantling systems of oppression that make certain groups disproportionately vulnerable,” the coalition declared. “The drug war itself has been a primary engine of this oppression.”
Evidence Against Punitive Measures
Citing a 2024 Amnesty International Philippines report, CPRH noted that coercion and abuse disguised as “rehabilitation” remain widespread in government-run drug detention centers.
The report documented how people were “forced to undergo programs that are not evidence-based,” subjected to mandatory drug testing in violation of privacy rights, and punished with prolonged isolation for rule violations.
“Punishment does not cure addiction, and fear does not build healthy communities,” CPRH said. “We call for genuine rehabilitation programs that holistically address the biopsychosocial components of addiction, including reintegration into society.”
A Call for Public Health and Rights
The coalition concluded that no amount of rhetoric can erase the human rights violations tied to the drug war.
“The only path forward demands a fundamental commitment to strengthening the public health system,” CPRH stated. “We must uphold a free, comprehensive, and progressive national healthcare framework. This vision is the only true route toward abolishing oppression in all its forms and ensuring the right to health for everyone.” # (RRN)
