Phoenix 24
The drug war is now returning through institutions.
Manila, May 2026. Chaos erupted inside the Philippine Senate after authorities attempted to arrest Senator Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa, a former police chief and close ally of ex-president Rodrigo Duterte, in connection with international proceedings over alleged crimes against humanity tied to the country’s anti-drug campaign. The operation triggered scenes of panic, reports of gunfire and the evacuation of journalists and staff from parts of the legislative complex.
Dela Rosa reportedly barricaded himself inside the Senate while security forces surrounded the building and Duterte supporters gathered outside in protest. Philippine media described a tense sequence in which the senator moved through corridors and stairways as investigators attempted to intercept him. Multiple shots were later heard inside the complex, although the immediate source and responsibility remained unclear.
The crisis exposes how deeply Duterte’s drug war still fractures Philippine politics. During his presidency, thousands were killed in anti-narcotics operations denounced by human rights organizations and international investigators as a pattern of extrajudicial violence. Dela Rosa, who served as national police chief during the most violent phase of the campaign, remains one of the central figures in that unresolved political and judicial legacy.
What unfolded in Manila was more than a police operation. It revealed a state struggling to reconcile domestic sovereignty, international justice and dynastic political power. The Senate itself became a symbolic battlefield between institutions trying to preserve internal protection and external mechanisms demanding accountability for one of Southeast Asia’s most controversial security campaigns.
Contra la propaganda, memoria. / Against propaganda, memory.