Instead of killing these helpless people… they can face me in a gun duel. “I have been challenging this death squads in Davao City to come and get me. I’m not the one bringing these death squads here in the Philippines,” he says. But he denies that he tolerated the gangs while police chief in his hometown. There are concerns among human rights activists that the death squads that used to stalk Davao City have also been exported countrywide.īut Bato says he’s ordered his officers to investigate and make arrests. But if you aim high you can achieve acceptable levels.” Is ridding a country such as the Philippines of drugs in just six months a realistic goal? I will tell (Duterte) to please relieve me from my post. He’s given himself six months to prove his mettle – “If I fail, I will surrender.
“I pity the guy for losing his life but at the same time I see that there is one less pusher.”īut what would he say to family members who have been killed? “Please do not be afraid of police.
He admits to “mixed emotions,” when he sees images of suspected drug dealers gunned down. In one breath he says he “hates extrajudical killings,” but in the next he says there are benefits to the spate of deaths. Life inside the Philippines’ most overcrowded jail There have been 756 suspects killed in police operations since the war on drugs began, alongside 1,160 drug-related killings that have occurred, many of which have been attributed to vigilantes. CNN could not independently verify the figures the government provided.īut the impressive numbers have come at a very visible human cost. In 6,000 police operations, he said drugs worth 2.38 billion pesos ($51 million) had been seized. In the two months since Duterte’s war on drugs began, his officers had arrested 10,153 drug pushers and users, he said in testimony to a senate inquiry in late August. “We don’t need” a national strategy, he says.
Tasked with transforming the Philippines, one of the poorest countries in Asia into a “drugless society,” he’s approached the task with an admirable zeal, if somewhat questionable methods. He’s a no-nonsense leader.”ĭuterte’s crackdown: 6 stories from the front linesĬertainly he’s done a remarkable job of doing Duterte’s bidding since he took office in June. “He’s the best leader in the universe for me. “So without saying any word we can communicate with each other, through mental telepathy,” he says, mimicking their thoughts passing through the ether, before bursting into laughter. He knows what I’m capable of doing and I know what he wants to be done. “We trust each other, in a very long time association. He remains remarkably close to the tough-talking leader, and jokes to CNN that he has a telepathic connection with the man they call “the Punisher.” He’s known Duterte for three decades, he says. Philippines blast: 3 sought in deadly bombing, Islamists suspected
0 kommentar(er)
