Philippine President says he can be held responsible for drug killings

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The Philippine President has said he has no problem with being held responsible for the many killings under his anti-drugs crackdown. He was ready to face charges that could land him in jail, though not charges of crimes against humanity. President Rodrigo Duterte’s televised remarks on Monday night were among his clearest acknowledgement of the prospects that he could face a deluge of criminal charges for the bloody campaign he launched after taking office in mid-2016. Nearly 6,000 killings of drug suspects have been reported by police but rights watchdogs suspect the death toll is far larger.

Mr. Duterte said, if this is allowed to go on and on and if no decisive action is taken against them, it will endanger the security of the state. When you save your country from the perdition of the people like the NPAs and drugs, you are doing a sacred duty.

Mr. Duterte said, there are 1.6 million drug addicts in the Philippines citing statistics from an anti-narcotics agency. The figure is much smaller than the 4 million addicts that he cited the police as reporting early in his presidency to justify his crackdown. The drug killings that did not happen during police operations should not be blamed on him. Those deaths may have been set off by gang rivalries or settling of scores.