Former Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has admitted that while he was mayor of one of the country’s largest cities, he formed a “death squad” to fight crime.
In his first testimony before a formal inquiry into his alleged war on drugs, the 79-year-old said the group was made up of gangsters, adding that he would tell them “kill this guy because if you don’t If you do, I will kill you right now.”
Duterte won the presidency in a landslide in 2016 on a promise to replicate Davao City’s anti-crime campaign across the country.
The nationwide war on drugs has seen thousands of suspects killed in controversial police operations and is now under investigation by the International Criminal Court.
During a Senate hearing on Monday, Duterte also said he told police officers to “encourage” suspects to fight back so officers could justify the killings.
Duterte said in his opening remarks: “Don’t question my policies because I will not apologize and I will not make excuses. I did what I had to do, whether you believe it or not… I did it for my country.
“I hate drugs, no question about it.”
However, he denied that he authorized the police chief to kill the suspect, adding that his “death squad” was made up of “gangsters… not police officers.”
“I can confess now if you want. I have a death squad of seven, but they are not police, they are gangsters.”
Duterte also remains defiant, claiming that many criminals have returned to illegal activities after leaving office.
“If you give me another chance, I will wipe out all of you,” he said.
Monday’s appearance was his first before an inquiry into his anti-drug campaign since his term ends in 2022.
It was also the first time he directly faced some of his accusers, including family members of drug war victims and Shape Senator Leila de LimaA critic of Duterte, a seven-year prison sentence on drug trafficking charges was eventually dropped.
The Philippine government estimates that more than 6,252 people have been shot dead by police and “unknown assailants” in Duterte’s “war on drugs”. Rights groups say the number could actually reach into the tens of thousands.
An earlier report by the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights found that Duterte’s anti-drug campaign was marked by high-level rhetoric that could be seen as giving police a “license to kill.”
Many of the victims claimed to be drug lords or peddlers and were often killed in “self-defense” during shootouts, police said. But many families claim their son, brother or husband was simply in the wrong place at the wrong time.
The War on Drugs movement is controversial and has drawn huge international criticism, but it also has its supporters in a country where millions of people use drugs, mainly methamphetamine, known locally as “shabu.”
