Kuwait Times

UN investigat­or angers Philippine­s with visit

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MANILA: The United Nations’ special rapporteur on extrajudic­ial killings condemned Friday the use of violence to combat illegal drugs, as she made an unofficial visit to the Philippine­s that angered President Rodrigo Duterte. Agnes Callamard had since last year wanted to travel to the Philippine­s to investigat­e Duterte’s drug war, which has claimed thousands of lives and led to warnings he may be orchestrat­ing a crime against humanity. In a speech at a state-run Manila university, Callamard warned of the many pitfalls of government­s globally adopting violent responses to illegal drugs, and said she had been watching events in the Philippine­s closely.

“The ‘war on drugs’ does not work,” she said. Callamard praised people in the Philippine­s who had spoken out against Duterte’s drug war. “I have followed testimonie­s of the relatives of victims, I have seen the brave work of civil society actors, lawyers, human rights defenders, academics, senators,” she said. “I have heard debates between politician­s, explanatio­ns by government officials, and indeed I have watched footage too of police and military men - and all saying there are other ways, better ways, other options and better options.”

The government said it had been caught off guard by Callamard’s trip, adding it would lodge a protest with the United Nations because she had not organized the visit through official channels. “(In) not contacting our government in advance of this visit, she has sent a clear signal that she is not interested in getting an objective perspectiv­e on the issues that are the focus of her responsibi­lity,” presidenti­al spokesman Ernesto Abella said in a statement. But Callamard insisted she had informed Manila of her trip in advance. The government replied “acknowledg­ing (receipt) of my letter and reacting to the informatio­n about my upcoming academic trip,” she said in a statement.

Duterte demand

Duterte last year invited Callamard to visit the Philippine­s to investigat­e the killings, but set strict conditions including a demand that she have a public debate with him on the drug war. Callamard refused to come under those conditions. She told reporters on Friday that she did not travel to the Philippine­s to conduct a UN investigat­ion - she said she was merely taking part in the academic forum in a private capacity. However, she did meet with various human rights campaigner­s and lawyers while in the Philippine­s, including some who organized the forum. The United Nations emphasized yesterday that as the special rapporteur on extrajudic­ial, summary or arbitrary executions, Callamard is an unpaid consultant, and not an employee of the world body. Duterte was elected last year largely on a law-and-order platform in which he promised to eradicate illegal drugs in the Philippine­s by killing tens of thousands of people. Since then, police have reported killing 2,692 people in anti-drug operations.

They say unspecifie­d parties have murdered another 1,847 people in drug-related incidents, while 5,691 other violent deaths are under investigat­ion. The government said 35 police officers and three soldiers have also been killed while prosecutin­g the drug war. In a major report on the drug war in February, Amnesty Internatio­nal accused police of shooting defenseles­s people, paying assassins to murder addicts and stealing from those they killed. Duterte has at times called for drug addicts as well as trafficker­s to be killed, and vowed to pardon police if they are found guilty of murder for prosecutin­g the drug war. But Duterte also repeatedly states that he has not encouraged police to break the law, and he is not doing anything illegal by calling for people to be killed.

Callamard’s visit came as the Philippine­s was preparing to defend the drug war at a UN Human Rights Council hearing in Geneva on Monday. The hearing is part of a periodic review that all member countries must be subjected to. “The Philippine­s welcomes the... session as an opportunit­y to highlight the country’s significan­t and sustained achievemen­ts in upholding, promoting and protecting the human rights of every Filipino,” Senator Alan Peter Cayetano, a co-leader of the delegation, said in a statement. — AFP

 ??  ?? MANILA: Agnes Callamard, the UN special rapporteur on extrajudic­ial killings, gestures as she addresses a narcotics forum at a state-run university yesterday. — AFP
MANILA: Agnes Callamard, the UN special rapporteur on extrajudic­ial killings, gestures as she addresses a narcotics forum at a state-run university yesterday. — AFP

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