PHL can handle threat indicated in US travel advisory —Duterte

President Rodrigo Duterte on Monday said that travelers in the Philippines should not worry even after the United States Embassy released an advisory warning its citizens of kidnappings in Central Visayas, especially Cebu and Bohol.

In a press conference in Davao City before heading to Saudi Arabia for his Middle East tour, Duterte said he knew about the alleged threat not from the military but from the news.

“I have read it, not from the military but from the newspaper. And besides kaya natin. Kaya natin,” Duterte said.

Duterte then recalled how he responded to a question about terrorism during the campaign period.

“I remember I was talking to – before a crowd sa [De] La Salle [University] during the debates but nobody showed up and I was the only one. And I was asked this question: ‘How will I treat terrorism?’ And I said, ‘Harshly,’” he said.

But when asked if people should refrain from travelling to the places mentioned by the US Embassy, Duterte then raised how Filipinos have prejudice against the Moro people. 

“Eh ang problema kasi nito is marami naman tayong mga kapatid na Moro na wala namang kakoneksyon-koneksyon diyan sa ano itong terrorism. But just because they are dressed in their native attire and they go about touring the Philippines, sometimes they are mistakenly identified,” Duterte said.

“Pero I would like to advice my countrymen that the Moro people are our brothers and sisters. And we should not be eternally forever be na parang matakot kayo. Mababait ‘yan, hindi lang ninyo kinakausap. Parang ano ‘yan sila eh ganon kasi akala nila galit tayo sa kanila. But you know they are all Filipinos like us. And we treat it as is,” he added.

But the case would be different for Moros with links to the terrorist groups.

“If you’re a member of the Maute connected with the terrorist group of Abu Sayyaf, under the umbrella of Al-Qaeda or itong ISIS, ah ibang istorya ‘yan… But let me say it again—harshly. At saka hindi ako magpalugi. I can do ten times better than you,” Duterte said. —NB, GMA News