A majority of Filipinos, 51%, believe that former President Rodrigo Duterte should be held accountable for the extrajudicial killings that occurred during his administration's war on drugs, according to a survey by Social Weather Stations (SWS).
The survey, commissioned by Stratbase, was conducted from February 15 to 19. It found that 25% of respondents disagreed with the idea of Duterte being held accountable, while 14% were undecided, and 10% said they didn’t have enough information to form an opinion.
Regional Breakdown:
- The Visayas had the highest support for holding Duterte accountable, with 62% of respondents agreeing.
- Northern Luzon followed at 60%, while Balance Luzon had 49%.
- Other regions: Central Luzon (48%), Mindanao (47%), NCR (45%), and Southern Luzon (44%).
- Support for accountability was higher in rural areas (52%) compared to urban areas (48%).
The survey interviewed 1,800 adult respondents nationwide:
- 300 from Metro Manila
- 900 from Balance Luzon (outside Metro Manila)
- 300 from the Visayas
- 300 from Mindanao
The margin of error for national percentages is ±2.31%, and for regional breakdowns, it is ±3.27% for Balance Luzon and ±5.66% for Metro Manila, the Visayas, and Mindanao.
Duterte is currently facing charges for crimes against humanity at the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague, Netherlands, for his administration’s violent drug campaign.
Official government records report over 6,000 drug suspects killed in operations. However, human rights groups believe the death toll could be as high as 30,000 due to unreported deaths.
Duterte attended his first ICC hearing on March 14 via video link. He was informed about his charges and rights as a suspect in the court.
The next session will resume on September 25.
