Duterte to rights advocates vs. drug war: Your complaints would just fall on deaf ears

President Rodrigo Duterte will not listen to human rights advocates who would complain about his war on drugs.

“Ito ‘yang droga, for these human rights in or out of the Philippines, hear this: Forget about it. Your complaints would just fall on deaf ears. Hindi kita pakinggan. I have promised, that was my second promise,” Duterte said before sending off Vietnamese fishermen in Sual, Pangasinan on Wednesday.

Although he made no mention of it, his statement came a day after the Supreme Court’s second session of oral arguments on the war on drugs in response to petitions filed by the relatives of alleged victims of war on drugs represented separately by human rights advocacy organizations Free Legal Assistance Group and the Center for International Law.

Duterte also lashed out at human rights advocates’ claim of extrajudicial killings without asking him about narco-politics in the country.

“Ang masakit sa akin, human rights guys who would come here and with their counterparts also off their rockers, sabihin, ‘Ito ang listahan sa namatay, extrajudicial kills,’” he said.

“But you come here, you just take a look in the list without asking me why and we became a narco-politics, ang Philippines, about four or five years ago. That’s the problem,” he added.

Murder

Duterte also reiterated that shooting at a drug suspect who has already surrendered would be considered as murder.

“Dito sa drugs, if there is an outstretched hand in surrender, you know, the only way that you can shoot and kill a person, is when your life itself or yourself is in danger of being killed,” he said.

“That’s the only justification. Otherwise, kneeling down or shooting him at the back would be murder,” he added.

He made this statement after Reuters published footage of an anti-drug operation conducted on October 11 in Manila, which belied the police’s claim that they shot at the suspects for self-defense. But then again, Duterte made no reference to the Reuters report in his speech.

Presidential spokesperson Harry Roque, meanwhile, assured the public that Duterte would not tolerate police killings when asked about Malacañang’s reaction to the Reuters report.

State obligation

In response, Commission on Human Rights chairperson Jose Luis Gascon said it is the state’s obligation to be involved on issues concerning human rights and not set them aside.

“Human Rights are a State Obligation. These are guarantees established by our constitution & laws as well as under international agreements which are all not discretionary that can be set aside,” Gascon told GMA News Online.

Gascon said the CHR will continue to document the country’s human rights situation amid the remarks of Duterte, especially after the Philippines committed to abide by Human Rights Standards during its universal period review before the United Nations Human Rights Council.

“The Philippines just completed the UPR process at the UN & affirmed its commitment to Human Rights Standards, thus it is a cause for concern for no less than the head of state to now say that complaints would just fall on deaf ears,” he said. — with Joseph Tristan Roxas/RSJ, GMA News