UUSC Condemns Trump’s Praise of Philippine President Duterte

May 1, 2017

On April 29, the White House reported that President Donald Trump had a “very friendly conversation” with President Rodrigo Duterte of the Philippines, whose brutal and illegal “war on drugs” has resulted in nearly 9,000 extrajudicial killings in less than one year. President Trump “enjoyed the conversation” so much that he invited Duterte to visit the White House. UUSC, together with our partners on the ground in the Philippines, condemns this shameful invitation.

Though praised by President Trump, Duterte’s campaign of extrajudicial killings is effectively a war on the urban poor amounting to crimes against humanity under international law. In addition to thousands of murders, more than 1 million people have “surrendered” to authorities in order to avoid being killed. The cruel drug war has also led to more than 50,000 arrests and exacerbated a problem of gross overcrowding in Philippine jails. Just days ago, a “secret jail” was discovered in the Manila District Police Station, where detainees arrested on purported drug charges were allegedly tortured.

UUSC’s partners in the Philippines, including the National Association of Social Work Educators, Inc. (NASWEI), Visayas Primary Health Care Services (VPHCS), and the Philippine Association of Community Resiliency Model Skills Trainers (PhilACTS), are working tirelessly to document instances of extrajudicial killings and provide human rights and trauma resiliency trainings to community leaders and members of civil society. President Trump’s actions over the weekend seriously undermine these efforts.

“Our partners, some of whom are risking their lives to empower and protect their communities, deserve better than an American president who fawns over authoritarianism and condones state-sanctioned murder,” said Michael Kourabas, UUSC’s Associate Director of Program & Partner Support, who recently visited the Philippines.

“President Trump’s invitation to Duterte is despicable and does not reflect the values of our country,” said former Congressman and UUSC’s President and CEO, Tom Andrews. “The United States must take a stand against power and oppression and protect the human rights and inherent dignity of all people.”