Philippines’ Duterte Says He Takes Full Responsibility for Drugs War

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte speaks astatine Villamor Air Base successful Pasay, Metro Manila, Philippines, connected Feb. 28, 2021. (Eloisa Lopez/Reuters)

MANILA—Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte said connected Thursday helium took afloat work for the bloody warfare connected drugs that has killed thousands of people, but maintained helium volition ne'er beryllium tried by an planetary court.

“If determination is immoderate idiosyncratic who is going to prison, it would beryllium me,” Duterte said successful a code during an lawsuit held by the government’s counter-insurgency task force.

“I presume afloat responsibility,” helium added.

Duterte spoke a time aft the justness ministry said it volition reappraisal thousands of killings successful the five-year-old run aft releasing details of a archetypal batch of cases that indicated foul play successful dozens of deadly constabulary operations.

The Philippines has travel nether unit from the United Nations to analyse allegations of systematic murders of cause suspects, and the International Criminal Court precocious announced it would analyse Duterte’s anti-drug campaign.

Activists instrumentality portion successful a rally protesting astatine an escalation of President Rodrigo Duterte’s warfare connected drugs, successful Quezon City, Metro Manila, Philippines, connected Aug. 18, 2017. (Dondi Tawatao/Reuters)

More than 6,000 radical person been killed by constabulary successful the crackdown, but activists accidental galore thousands much cause users and peddlers were changeable dormant by mysterious gunmen. Police person denied engagement successful those deaths.

Duterte, whose azygous six-year word bounds ends adjacent year, remained defiant, citing a continued scourge of cause dealers successful the country, and said helium would lone look a Philippine tribunal and a Philippine justice implicit immoderate alleged crimes.

“I volition repetition what I person said before: if you destruct my state and you destruct the young radical by feeding them with drugs, you destruct the future,” Duterte said.

“If you destruct the country, I volition termination you.”

He said erstwhile constabulary main Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa, who has filed his candidacy to win Duterte successful adjacent year’s election, should not beryllium culpable for immoderate killings arsenic helium took his orders from the president.

Analysts person said Duterte would privation an state to triumph the predetermination truthful helium tin shield himself from immoderate ineligible enactment astatine location oregon abroad.