Airdate: Aswang

New documentary Aswang, which profiles Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte’s brutal drug war will screen on streaming platform, iwonder.

iwonder CEO, James Bridges, says of the film: “This chilling full-length documentary directorial debut from Alyx Ayn Arumpac is a powerful account of the terror that has gripped the streets of Manila since President Duterte’s brutal war on drugs began. As Duterte hints at a vice-presidential run in the 2022 elections to extend his legacy, Aswang serves as a message in a bottle from some of the country’s most vulnerable communities who continue to live in the real fear of a late night raid by state-sponsored executioners.”

You can view the trailer here (distressing images).

‘Aswang’ is a term in the Philippines for witches, vampires, ghosts and werewolves—a collection of shape-shifting evil spirits that feature heavily in local myths and popular films. But since President Duterte took office, ‘Aswang’ have been appearing in real life in Manila.

In Duterte’s drug war, death squads have shot, tortured and kidnapped tens of thousands of drug users, dealers and innocent bystanders, as police officers are allegedly given free rein to use brutal violence directed at the poorest sections of society. These extra-judicial killings have now been named as crimes against humanity by Amnesty International.

The multi-award winning Aswang follows a group of people whose lives have been caught up in these events: a journalist who tries to make a stand against lawlessness, a coroner, a missionary who comforts bereaved family members, and a street kid with parents in prison and friends in the cemetery.

Breathlessly following the everyday struggle of those whose lives have been radically affected by the regime, Aswang is a shocking account of unprecedented violence and the brazen assault on freedoms by a Government and its President which still enjoy support from voters, while countless others at home and abroad look on with horror.

Thursday July 22nd on iwonder.