Yasay demands apology from UN rapporteur

UNITED Nations special rapporteur on extrajudicial killings Agnes Callamard must apologize to President Rodrigo Duterte over the ‘tremendous’ damage she had caused to the Philippines.

Speaking to reporters in Singapore, Foreign Affairs Secretary Perfecto Yasay said Callamard’s ‘arbitrary’ findings on the rising death toll of drug personalities in the country had made people believed that the Duterte administration should be blamed for it.

“She has damaged the country tremendously by her statement. People had jumped into conclusion that extrajudicial killings have been perpetrated in the Philippines, that there is rampant violation and state-sponsored violation of human rights,” said Yasay.

“The damage that she has wrought on the basis of her responsibility is great. It demands no less than apology,” he added.

Last August, Callamard lambasted the President over the number of slain individuals who are allegedly linked to illicit drug operation.

Callamard said Duterte is apparently giving the people the “license to kill” the drug suspects in the country.

“Directives of this nature are irresponsible in the extreme and amount to incitement to violence and killing, a crime under international law. It is effectively license to kill,” said Callamard.

Yasay demanded that Callamard absolve the government from the drug-related deaths because her statement was not even verified.

“She must apologize for the arbitrary findings that she has made,” he said.