Philippines President Confesses to Personally Killing Criminals When He Was Mayor

Rodrigo Duterte, president of the Philippines, says he personally killed people while he was mayor of a southern city.

According to the ABC, Mr Duterte admitted to the killings in a speech to business executives at the presidential palace earlier this week.

“I must admit that a third of the killings happened during police encounters,” he said. Mr Duterte explained he would hunt criminals down himself to set an example.

“I used to do it personally—just to show the guys that if I can do it, why can’t you?”

The President described how he would ride around Davao on a motorcycle, patrolling the streets and looking for trouble. “I was really looking for an encounter to be able to kill,” he confessed.

Mr Duterte insists drug suspects were only killed under his anti-drug crackdown as mayor (and now, as president) when they fought back and threatened law enforcers.

His latest admission leaves him open to impeachment, warns a senator.

Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre has rushed to defend the President, saying he tends to exaggerate the truth to set a precedent for police.

“By boasting about the blood on his own hands, President Duterte will further embolden police and vigilantes to blatantly violate laws and carry out more extrajudicial executions without fear of being held to account,” said Rafendi Djamin, Amnesty’s director for South East Asia and the Pacific.

There are concerns over the nature of Mr Duterte’s statements and whether it will give civilians (including police) in the Philippines a “license to kill”.

The President is no stranger to criticism over his drug policies. After taking office in June, he has been widely condemned for his brutal crackdown on illegal drugs. It has led to the deaths of more than 2,000 suspects in gun battles with police.

There are around 3,000 other drug-related killings being investigated by authorities to determine whether they were related to illegal drug trades.

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