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PoliticsPhilippines

Filipino woman who lost family to drug war takes on Duterte

Ana P. Santos in Manila & the Hague | Analie Neiteler in the Hague
October 7, 2025

Grace Garganta's father and brother were killed at the start of former Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte's deadly drug war in 2016. Now she's following the former president of the Philippines to the International Criminal Court in The Hague. Duterte is charged with crimes against humanity on multiple counts there.

https://p.dw.com/p/51bPf

As president of the Philippines between 2016 and 2022, Rodrigo Duterte launched a so-called "war on drugs." This crackdown targetinged mostly poor men suspected of using or selling drugs. They were often violently killed without trial.  

Official figures acknowledge say at least 6,0008,000 people were killed during Duterte's crackdown.  

Human rights groups report the number of people killed may have been as high as 30,000.  

Including Grace Garganta's brother, Joseph, and her father, Marcelo are just two of the victims of the drug war of these statistics.