WITHDRAW THE IBP “GOLDEN PILLAR OF LAW AWARD”

GRANTED TO RODRIGO R. DUTERTE

The Integrated Bar of the Philippines (IBP) must uphold justice and the Rule of Law  — not reward those who commit egregious injustice and break the law with impunity.

On September 15, 2025, the IBP gave its Golden Pillar of Law Award to Rodrigo R. Duterte, supposedly honoring “fifty years of service upholding justice and the rule of law.”

To honor Duterte this way justifies the killing of tens of thousands in his war on drugs, normalizes the trashing of the Rule of Law, and makes a mockery of the legal profession.

I. Why this Award must be Withdrawn

Rodrigo Duterte’s record is the antithesis of what this award stands for.

1.   Duterte’s war on drugs led to the deaths of tens of thousands — many of them poor and powerless — killed without due process or accountability.

2.   Duterte is facing trial for these deaths before the International Criminal Court for crimes against  humanity.

3.   Duterte extra-judicially admitted under oath on national television, before the Senate and House of Representatives investigations, that he –

    a. Organized the Davao Death Squad;  

    b. Personally killed suspected drug peddlers;

  c. Instructed the police to encourage suspected drug peddlers and users to fight back, even giving them firearms, to justify killing them; 

  d. Assumed personal and full responsibility for the deaths of tens of thousands in his war on drugs.

4.   Duterte   threatened  judges, mocked lawyers, and  attacked  institutions  that  sought accountability.

5.    Duterte boasted publicly that he planted evidence in criminal cases when he was a government prosecutor. 

6.   Duterte degraded women, normalized violence, and dismissed human rights as a joke.

To call him a pillar of the law is the cruelest mockery of the law.  It is erasure. It erases victims, human rights defenders, and the IBP’s own mission of justice and accountability.

II. What the IBP Must Do

As the national organization of lawyers, the IBP has a duty to defend the Rule of Law and human rights — not betray them.

We call on the IBP Board of Governors to:

    1.    Withdraw and revoke the award;

    2.    Reaffirm its commitment to justice and the Rule of Law; and

    3.    Reform its award protocols to ensure integrity and transparency.

III. Stand on the Right Side of History

To reward impunity is to betray every lawyer, every victim, and every Filipino who still believes in justice and the Rule of Law.

We cannot be silent because silence is acquiescence.

Withdraw this award. Restore integrity. Uphold the Rule of Law.

Sign if you believe that one who faithfully follows and defends the Rule of Law - not one who is detained in jail and facing trial for crimes against humanity before the International Criminal Court — defines a true pillar of the law.