Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte said Tuesday that anyone found “acting out of line” in his fight against drugs would be prosecuted according to national law. Duterte appears to have rejected an investigation by the International Criminal Court (ICC).
At the 76th UN General Assembly, Duterte said he had ordered the Department of Justice and the Philippine police to review the crackdown, in which more than 6,100 suspected drug dealers and users have been killed since he took office in June 2016.
Duterte did not mention a formal investigation into possible crimes against humanity, which was approved by an ICC judge last week, though he appears to reject outside intervention, in human rights issues.
The Duterte government last week said it would not cooperate with the ICC or allow researchers into the Philippines. Duterte and his police chief said the killings were in self -defense and his government insisted the ICC had no right to interfere in Philippine internal affairs.
Rights groups say Duterte personally instigated the deadly violence in the drug war, and accuse police of killing unarmed suspects on a large scale. They also said the police executed the suspect, a charge the police immediately denied. (ka/ps)
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