December 17

Since June 30, 2016 when Rodrigo Duterte took office as President of the Philippines, a “war on drugs” has been waged that continues today under the current President, Ferdinand Marcos Jr., despite his promise to end the killings. The Philippines government has reported that more than 6,200 people have been killed by police as part of this campaign, while the UN has put the estimate at closer to 8,600 people. Philippine human rights groups have estimated that more than 30,000 people have been extrajudicially killed by police and other unidentified gunmen. The majority of those who have been killed have been people who use drugs (PWUD), most of whom live in poverty in urban areas. Virtually none of these killings have been investigated and the police have been accused of planting or fabricating evidence to justify the killings. As many “tough on drugs” policies implemented around the world, the ones in the Philippines criminalize people and do nothing to address the underlying reasons why people might use and sell drugs. These policies have also led to government officials targeting opponents and human rights activists, including church leaders, journalists, and opposition politicians, resulting in imprisonment, torture, and death.

Just as criminalization is a global practice with global impacts, harm reduction is a global practice that acknowledges and addresses the root causes that affect people’s vulnerability to drug-related harm.  International solidarity calls us to respond not only to the violence aimed at PWUD, but also to the social inequities that create and exacerbate harm under state violence.  This Advent, let us follow the example of the Psalmist who uses their voice and platform to remind and hold accountable those in power to a vision of justice rooted in collective liberation, mutual care, and the end of oppression.  May we turn our psalms into actions of solidarity, because we wait for and celebrate the King who comes not with coercive power, violent suppression, and military might, but as Love-made-flesh in the vulnerable tenderness of a child.

Prayer

King of Love, Ruler of Justice, Sovereign of Care, Prince of Peace
as we long for the arrival of your liberating and upending presence,
open our hearts to visions of justice and safety beyond policing,
enlarge our hearts to hold ever-widening circles of concern and solidarity,
compel our hearts to connect our flourishing to the flourishing of our siblings everywhere.
For you reign in the glory of the power that is love, now and forever.  Amen.

Freedom Song

Music: “Courage, My Friend” by Eric Bogle & South African Anti-Apartheid Movement
Offered by: Sharon R. Fennema