Malacañang allies in the House of Representatives yesterday slammed President Duterte for his alleged threat to human rights defenders who have been critical of extra-judicial killings that have blackened the government’s anti-drug war.
ACT Teachers party-list Reps. Antonio Tinio and France Castro said that instead of issuing the threat, Duterte should have taken the criticisms constructively and act on them.
However, at a news forum in Quezon City, Manila Teachers party-list Rep. Virgilio Lacson said Duterte’s statements should be taken as his way of stressing the importance of an issue.
In the same forum, lawyer Larry Gadon, a staunch supporter of Duterte’s federalism plan, said the President may have uttered what human rights advocate perceive as a threat because of his frustration over the continued proliferation of drugs.
“The anti-drug campaign has yielded many positive results but some quarters continue to criticize the President’s efforts in ensuring its success,” said Gadon.
Earlier, the Amnesty International Philippines said it is “appalled” by Duterte’s recent speech where he accused human rights advocates and defenders of paving the way for the drug problem to proliferate.
“When governments try to silence human rights defenders, they do so either by penalizing their activirties or, in most instances, by labeling them as obstacles to law enforcement,” the AIP said. (Ben R. Rosario)