Philippines president threatens to exit UN

The president of the Philippines has threatened to quit the United Nations in response to criticism from UN human rights officials over hundreds of extrajudicial killings of drug suspects that have occurred in the country since he took office. He said he may even look to set up another global organisation.

He pointed early on Sunday to the haunting image of a bloodied child pulled from the rubble of a missile-struck building in the Syrian city of Aleppo to hit United Nations and U.S. inability to stop such deadly conflicts while he said he comes under fire for the deaths of criminals.

Mr Duterte has sanctioned the killing of traffickers in a belligerent bid to destroy the country’s rampant drugs trade, including promising medals to any member of the public who shoots a drug dealer.

At his press conference in his home city of Davao, Mr Duterte said he did not hear the United Nations expressing the same outrage over the police shootings of blacks in the USA as it had over the extrajudicial killings in the Philippines. “I unequivocally condemn his apparent endorsement of extrajudicial killings, which is illegal and a breach of fundamental rights and freedoms”, Ban said. “I do not read (about) anybody from that stupid body complaining about the stench there of death”, he said. The UN, he said, should return Manila’s financial contributions. “So what’s the difference?”

Rodrigo Duterte answers questions from journalists during a press conference on May 10, 2016 in Davao City, Philippines.

“Why are you Americans killing the black people there, shooting them down when they are already on the ground?” he said. Is that not rubbing off also?

He accused the United Nations of ignoring the plight of the country.

Duterte, who announced the restoration of the death penalty, has vowed to end drug trafficking in six months in accordance with a pledge he made during the electoral campaign, which helped him win the vote by a large majority. His aides have since said such comments are merely hyperbole and not meant to be taken literally. “You have fallen short of the protocol needed for respect, and you want me to respect you?” he said.

Two U.N. human rights experts last week urged Manila to stop the extra-judicial executions and killings that have escalated since Duterte won the presidency on a promise to wipe out drugs.

The former Justice Secretary also said it would look into results of investigations of concerned agencies and come up with initial conclusions and observations for legislative remedy.