“Your duty requires you [police forces] to overcome the resistance of the person you are arresting… [if] he resists, and it is a violent one… you are free to kill the idiots, that is my order to you,” Duterte said during a speech at the Hero’s Cemetery outside of Manila.
During his speech Duterte added that “murder and homicide and unlawful killings” were not allowed. He stressed that the police must maintain the rule of law while carrying out their duties.
The president met the parents of the 17-year-old victim at the presidential palace in Manila on Monday, to assure them their son's case would be handled fairly.
According to Human Rights Watch since the inauguration of President Rodrigo Duterte on June 30, 2016, and his call for a “war on drugs,” Philippine National Police officers and unidentified “vigilantes” have killed over 7,000 people.
Duterte’s outspoken promise to embark on a nationwide killing campaign against drug dealers and drug users was the basis of his presidential electoral platform.
