UNITED Nations (UN) Special Rapporteur on Extrajudicial Executions Agnes Callamard rejected anew Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte’s invitation for her to visit and assess the current situation in the country.
In a series of social media posts, Callamard reiterated that the preconditions on her official visit to investigate the alleged state-sanctioned killings and rights abuses linked to Duterte’s so-called drug war were “unacceptable.”
“An official visit is not a vehicle for entertainment, theatrics, or politicking,” the UN rapporteur said in a tweet on Wednesday, August 30.
“An official visit without respect for the victims, respect for the law, respect for due process would be unacceptable,” she added.
Duterte invited the UN rapporteur last December with the preconditions including a public debate with him, and that she should take an oath to “confirm her intention to be truthful.”
But Callamard then said that such preconditions “contravene both the spirit and the letter of the code of conduct and are not in line with the working methods of Special Procedures.”
Earlier this week, Duterte accused Callamard of speaking up without having no idea about the context of drug menace in the Philippines after she issued a fresh statement condemning his anti-illegal drugs campaign.
Duterte hurled fresh expletives against Callamard after she posted in a social media that the death of 17-year-old Kian Delos Santos should be the last in his drug war.
“T*** i** niya, sabihin mo. Huwag niya akong takutin. P***** i** niya. G*** pala siya eh. Taga-saan ba ‘yang buang na ‘yan (Tell her son of a b****. She should not intimidate me. Son of a b****. She is a fool),” an irked Duterte remarked.
He went on to say, “Papuntahan mo siya dito. Tingnan mo ang sitwasyon. Do not ever give me that kind of sh**. (Let her come here. Look at the situation. Do not ever give me that kind of sh**).”
A Palace official later clarified that the conditions previously set for the UN rapporteur’s visit had not changed.
Callamard lamented Duterte’s expletive-laden response.
“I regret President Duterte’s response to my condolences to Kian Lloyd delos Santos’ family. Kian and others like him deserve dignity and justice. His family and families like his demand our respect and empathy. Not expletives,” she said.
The UN rapporteur further stressed that it is the Philippine government’s obligation to ensure that “all unlawful deaths at the hands of the Police are independently, impartially, effectively, and promptly investigated.”
She also affirmed her “keen interest and commitment to undertake an official visit to the Philippines.”
