‘Duterte has sunk to new depths’—Amnesty International

President Rodrigo Duterte. AP FILE PHOTO

An international human rights group on Friday criticized President Rodrigo Duterte for his speech where he drew parallel between the executions of drug addicts in the Philippines and the killings of Jews by Adolf Hitler.

“With this latest outburst, President Duterte has sunk to new depths. Governments—both in the region and around the world—should speak out immediately and condemn these outrageous statements,” said Josef Benedict, Amnesty International’s (AI) Deputy Director for Southeast Asia and the Pacific in a statement.

“They serve no discernible purpose other than to put more lives at risk.”

Reacting to his critics who have compared him to Hitler, Duterte on Friday said he was willing to kill millions of drug addicts to solve the country’s problems.

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“There are 3 million drug addicts (in the Philippines). I’d be happy to slaughter them,” he said.

“If Germany had Hitler, the Philippines would have…,” he said, pausing and pointing to himself.

Various individuals and organizations including Jewish groups have condemned Duterte’s “disgusting rhetoric.”

AI, which has slammed Duterte for his shoot-to-kill order against officials suspected of being involved in the drug trade, noted the rise in human rights violations since Duterte’s election.

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“Since coming to power, there has been a surge of state-sanctioned violence and unlawful killings across the Philippines. Instead of stopping and condemning these human rights violations, and ensuring those responsible are held to account, he has vowed to escalate them,” Benedict added.

“Mass killing under President Duterte must end.”