The Philippines slipped one notch to 137th out of 163 countries in the 2018 Global Peace Index, giving it the second-worst score in the Asia Pacific, just ahead of North Korea, which placed 150th.
The Institute for Economics and Peace, which does the yearly survey, said the Philippines “suffered particularly badly as President Duterte continued his assault on alleged drug dealers and from the five-month battle between government forces and Islamic militants who took over the city of Marawi.”
Some 1,200 people were killed during the siege of Marawi, which ended five months after it started, but Mindanao remains under martial law.
The institute also said the Philippines was among the countries that increased weapon imports last year, as China continued to exert itself “both militarily and politically in the region.”
The report cited the warming of ties between Beijing and Manila as Duterte “reached an understanding with China.”
The study reported the global level of peace deteriorated by 0.27 percent in the past year, with six out of nine regions experiencing a fall in peacefulness.
The Global Peace Index ranks 163 countries according to their level of peacefulness. The institute says this covers 99.7 percent of the world’s population.
Philippine National Police chief Oscar Albayalde disputed the Global Peace Index results, and invited members of the Institute of Economics and Peace to visit the Philippines to appreciate the real peace and order situation in the country.
Albayalde said the institute’s findings were perceptions that might have been shaped by various groups, including human rights groups that have been critical of the Duterte administration.