UN slams Duterte over rights violations in war on drugs
MANILA: A UN agency on Thursday released a no-holds barred report denouncing President Rodrigo “Rody” Duterte for alleged rampant human rights violations arising from the violent war on illegal drugs, “reinforced by harmful rhetoric” from some officials with some “rising to the level of excitement for violence.”
The report was released by the UN Office of the High Commission of Human Rights which pointed out this particular focus “has permeated the implementation of existing laws and policies and the adoption of of new measures - often at the expense of human rights, the rule of law and accountability.”
The report was released in line with a resolu
The leaflet campaigns have been a thorny issue between the two Koreas, but enacting such a law could spark an outcry over the possible infringement of the right to freedom of expression.
Nonetheless, an official at the South Korean presidential office said the leaflets did “more harm than good,” adding the government would “respond firmly” to anything that damages nation adopted by the UN Human Rights Council in July 2019 that asked Michelle Bachellet, the head of the UN rights office, to prepare and submit a report to the council during its 44th session in June.
Aside from the drugs war killings, Bachellet pointed out her report also highlighted the massive threats against progressive groups, activists and journalists as the Duterte administration stepped up its campaign against communist elements.
“Human rights definitions are often said with facts to the point that the focus is diverted to discrediting messaging rather than expanding the substance of the message,” the report stressed.
it likewise lamented there was little or no actional security, the Yonhap news agency reported.
In her statement, Kim Yo Jong threatened to scrap a military pact signed during Moon’s visit countability over the killings, citing the lack of progress of cases filed before the Office of the Ombudsman, the country’s chief graft-buster.
The Philippine National Police (PNP) earlier insisted that close to 6,000 drug suspects have been killed since Duterte launched his violent and bloody war on illegals immediately after he took over as president in June 2016.
But human rights advocates claimed the death toll could reach as high as 20,000, most of whom were poor and including those killed by “vigilante groups” allegedly linked to the police.
The release of the UN report came a day after the House of Representatives, dominated by Duterte supporters, approved on third an to Pyongyang in 2018 aimed at easing tensions, and shut down a cross-border liaison office.
But most of the deals agreed at that meeting have not been acted on, with Pyongyang largely cutting off contact with Seoul following the collapse of a summit between Kim and US President Donald Trump in Hanoi last year that left nuclear talks at a standstill. final reading the proposed anti-terrorism law amid warnings this could lead to more human rights violations.
Lawmakers explained that with its passage, the bill could now be transmitted to Malacanang Palace for signing into law by Duterte, explaining the measure was an exact duplicate of the one approved by the Senate in February this year.
But Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana defended the proposal as he pointed out: “Anybody who makes a peaceful protest is not a terrorist. It is enshrined in our Constitution that you can do peaceful protests, a peaceful assembly. Those are actually protected by the Bill of Rights.”