Securitisation, Scapegoat, Identity Politics
Why Did President Duterte Mark Record-High Approval Ratings Despite His Failure to Combat the Covid-19 Pandemic
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 6434898 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Kenki Adachi (0000-0002-7763-236X, Ritsumeikan University, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2024 |
| Volume | 44 |
| Issue | 1 |
| Pages | 55-71 |
| Publication date | 2024-10-22 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Journal of Current Southeast Asian Affairs (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 1868-1034 • E-ISSN: 1868-4882 |
| Publisher | SAGE Publications (PUBLISHER • US) |
| DOI | 10.1177/18681034241280648 |
| OpenAlex | W4403652925 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 2 |
| References cited | 31 |
This paper delves into the Philippines’ response to the COVID-19 pandemic, focusing on the enforcement of a rigorous lockdown and the paradoxical rise in President Rodrigo Duterte's approval despite the virus's unmitigated spread. While conventional analyses lean on securitisation to explain military involvement in pandemic control, this paper argues that COVID-19 was not securitised in the Philippines. Instead, the government targeted the “pasaway” (undisciplined) as a supposed threat to national security, employing identity politics. By presenting the undisciplined as adversaries, the government garnered support from perceived “good citizens.” Despite human rights concerns and a lack of evidence linking the undisciplined to virus transmission, the narrative of cracking down on them garnered widespread approval. This challenges traditional securitisation explanations, suggesting that the emphasis on a “scapegoated enemy” and identity politics played a pivotal role in shaping public perception and elevating presidential approval ratings
2019-20 coronavirus outbreak · Art · Biology · Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19 · Identity (music · Pandemic · Political science · Politics · Scapegoat · Global Security and Public Health · Health and Conflict Studies · Law · Medicine · Migration, Refugees, and Integration · Virology
New and old wars
“Wars” on Covid-19 in Slovakia, Russia, and the United States
Critical Security Studies
Security
Medical populism and the Covid-19 pandemic
The people's army “enemising” the people
Brute Force Governance
The Philippines’ Covid-19 Response
Politics of Anxiety, Politics of Hope
A New Penal Populism? Rodrigo Duterte, Public Opinion, and the War on Drugs in the Philippines
Security and the democratic scene
The Copenhagen School on Tour in Kyrgyzstan
The politics of studying securitization? The Copenhagen School in Turkey
Actor, Audience(s) and Emergency Measures
Securitization and counter-securitization in Afghanistan
The undersecuritization of Covid-19 in Japan
Military Responses to the Covid-19 Pandemic Crisis in Latin America
Words, Images, Enemies
The Politics of Exceptionalism
Theorizing the image for Security Studies
The Three Faces of Securitization
Securitization and the Construction of Security
The cure cannot be worse than the problem
We are at war
Continuity, History, and Identity
Misplaced Priorities, Unnecessary Effects
| Unique citing works | 2 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 2 |
| Citation span | 2025 - 2026 (2) |
| Citation velocity | current |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 2 |