The Philippine Senate has ousted the chair of the Senate Committee on Justice and Human Rights in an apparent reprisal for her inquiry into the surge in killings linked to President Rodrigo Duterte’s “war on drugs”, Human Rights Watch said today.
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Member countries of the European Union had earlier released a statement calling for an investigation into the mounting death toll in the Philippines to comply with “national and global obligations and respect for human rights”. That is all it takes for me to stand up and say ENOUGH. It’s likely the panel will back off; de Lima’s replacement, Senator Richard Gordon, is an ally of the president.
President Rodrigo Duterte gives a speech during his visit to the 9th Infantry Division Spear Troopers at Camp Elias Angeles in Camarines Sur on September 21, 2016. “I did not have any idea that there were hundreds of thousands of people already in the drug business and what makes it worse is that they are operated now by people in government – especially those elected positions”.
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Duterte’s brutal response came after the European Parliament expressed its concern over the high number of killings during antidrug police operations.
“I will write them a letter to invite them for an investigation”, Duterte said, adding he is willing to participate in an open forum that may be held at the Philippine Senate or a local theater as part of the probe.
Speaking at a media briefing in Davao, Duterte said he was overwhelmed by the scale of the problem.
In two previous lists, Duterte identified military and police officials, lawmakers and judges with alleged connections to the drug trade.
President Rodrigo Duterte on Thursday denied that his “mouth” put the country in bad light in the worldwide scene.
Last week, de Lima presented a man named Edgar Matobato, who claimed to have worked as a hitman on the Davao Death Squad. “Can I rely on the regular authorities in government?”
But he admitted for the first time on Sunday that in spite of his administration’s relentless and sustained war against drug-related crimes, the six-month deadline he imposed on himself was not enough. He recently said he underestimated the magnitude of the drug problem and will extend the crackdown by another half year.
Acknowledging for the first time that he may not be able to keep his campaign promise to eradicate illegal drugs in no more than six months, President Rodrigo Duterte said in jest that with the huge number of people involved, “even if I wanted to, I can not kill them all”.
Stay on topic – This helps keep the thread focused on the discussion at hand.
“You should look at history books, encyclopedia of events”.
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Be Civil – It’s OK to have a difference in opinion but there’s no need to be a jerk.
