‘Aswang’ war on drugs docu to be re-streamed

The award-winning documentary Aswang will be available for streaming in the Philippines until Tuesday, 18 March, following the arrest of former President Rodrigo Duterte.

In a Facebook post, the human rights organization Active Vista announced that the 2019 documentary, which highlights the killings during the peak of Duterte’s administration's war on drugs, is now available to watch for free.

The thought-provoking documentary can be watched online through this link: https://bit.ly/DuterteAswang

“With Duterte’s arrest, the fight for justice is far from over. Our duty remains clear: to keep telling the victims’ stories and demand accountability for his crimes against humanity,” Active Vista’s post reads.

Aswang is a one-hour-and-twenty-four-minute documentary that follows the lives of the victims and the families left behind by the former administration's war on drugs.

Among the scenes included in the documentary is the discovery of a “secret prison cell” behind a bookshelf inside a Manila police station in 2017, where at least 12 prisoners were found.

The documentary earned multiple accolades from various award-giving bodies, including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Documentary, and Best Cinematography at the 44th Gawad Urian Awards.

Aswang's director, Alyx Arumpac, expressed her satisfaction following Duterte’s arrest.

“Wishing former President Rodrigo Duterte safe travels and good health as he faces accountability for the tens of thousands of Filipinos murdered in his name,” Arumpac said in her Facebook post.

During Duterte’s war on drugs, at least 6,300 drug users were officially reported as killed. However, the International Criminal Court (ICC) estimates that the actual number of deaths between 2016 and 2019 ranges from 12,000 to 30,000.