Media Quote

Following the global launch of Amnesty International’s Annual Report 2020/21, Secretary General, Dr. Agnès Callamard, highlights in her quotes the human rights situation in the Philippines:

“Almost five years into his presidency, President Duterte continues to incite a wave of human rights violations and fuel a climate of impunity for the perpetrators, turning the Philippines into a country where police and state forces are free to kill as they please.”

Assurances to the international community that the government will investigate human rights violations cannot be taken seriously as long as incitement and killings continue. The world can no longer stand idly by while the deadly campaign against people using or selling drugs continues. Human rights defenders, political activists, Indigenous peoples and other targeted groups continue to be arrested and attacked and sometimes killed; while independent media is silenced. Amnesty International demands justice and accountability for the victims and countless families left behind.”