But Philippine foreign secretary Perfecto Yasay played down the comments, saying the Philippines would never quit the United Nations and that the comments reflected the president’s disappointment over the criticism.
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United Nations human rights experts have said that the president’s directive for police and members of the public to kill suspected drug traffickers amounts to “incitement to violence and killing – a crime under global law”.
Duterte, who built a name as a tough crime-busting mayor before rising to the presidency in June, has repeatedly threatened criminals, especially drug dealers, with death. They said the drive amounted to “incitement to violence and killing, a crime under worldwide law”.
As recently as Sunday, the number of suspected drug traffickers killed in Mr Duterte’s seven-week war on drugs had been put at about 900 by Philippine officials. “He was stating the fact that the Philippines is a sovereign nation and should not be meddled with”, Abella said.
“Look at the iconic boy that was taken out from the rubble and he was made to sit in the ambulance and we saw it”, Duterte said, referring to the photo of a 5-year-old Syrian boy, Omran Daqneesh, that has gone viral online.
However, the new president’s approach to drug crime is facing scrutiny within the country, with one of Duterte’s most vocal opponents, Senator Leila de Lima, conducting an inquiry into the high numbers of drug-related deaths since the new leader took office.
Mr Duterte said the United Nations had been unable to combat hunger and terrorism and had failed to end the killing of civilians in Iraq and Syria.
If the Philippines were to leave the UN, Duterte said, he would invite China and African countries to join in forming a new intergovernmental organization.
Philippine National Police Chief Ronald Dela Rosa said on Monday that 712 drug traffickers and users had been killed during police operations.
Police have said numerous dead drugs suspects were shot while resisting arrest or were killed by rival gang members.
During his election campaign, he promised to kill 100,000 people and dump so many bodies in Manila Bay that fish would get fat from feeding on them.
Duterte on Friday denied that the government or police forces were involved in such killings.
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“You now, UN, if you can say one bad thing about me, I can give you ten (about you)”, he said, before mentioning the organisation’s “failure” to curb hunger and terrorism.
