James Taylor has called off his February concert in Manilla, The Philippines due to the country’s policies over drugs.
Specifically, there have been reports of punishments for drug offenders including the deaths of over 6,000 people without a trial.
Taylor expressed his concerns on most social media sites and on his own website:
I’ve been eagerly looking forward to playing for my Philippine audience ever since we added Manila to our tour of the Pacific this coming February. So it saddens me to cancel our concert there. I don’t think of my music as being particularly political but sometimes one is called upon to make a political stand.
The scourge of addiction is a worldwide problem and does serious harm, not only to the addict but to our society. For a sovereign nation to prosecute and punish, under the law, those responsible for the illegal trade in drugs is, of course, understandable, even commendable; but recent reports from the Philippines of summary executions of suspected offenders without trial or judicial process are deeply concerning and unacceptable to anyone who loves the rule of law.
I offer my heartfelt apologies for any inconvenience or disappointment this may cause my Filipino friends but I must now announce that I will not be performing in Manila this February. All tickets sold will, of course, be fully refunded. I am grateful to my promoter, Renen de Guia, for his patience and understanding.
This decision will, in no way, affect my plans to perform as announced in Hong Kong, Singapore, Australia and New Zealand.
James Taylor
Reactions on Twitter were split with many praising Taylor for his stand while others are saying the cancellation was actually due to poor ticket sales. A number also criticized Taylor for not understanding the situation, “@JamesTaylor_com you dont know about a damn thing in our country better if you live here so that you will fully know whats really happening.”
The rest of Taylor’s tour, including dates in Singapore, Australia, New Zealand and Hong Kong will go on as planned.
