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WORLD NEWS Saturday 13 July 2019

Duterte critics laud UN vote to scrutinize drug killings

By JIM GOMEZ action would be less than
Associated Press a commission of inquiry
MANILA, Philippines (AP) that activists have wanted,
— Critics of the Philippine it would be “a clear signal
president’s deadly anti- to Duterte and his cohorts
drug campaign said Friday that truth and justice will
that a vote by the U.N.’s prevail and that the per-
top human rights body to petrators and masterminds
look into the thousands of behind the atrocities will
deaths of suspects is a cru- be held accountable,” de
cial step toward bringing Lima said in a statement
perpetrators to justice and from her detention cell.
helping end the killings. “This vote provides hope
President Rodrigo Duterte’s for thousands of bereaved
spokesman, however, con- families in the Philippines
demned the resolution ad- and countless more Filipi-
opted by the U.N. Human nos bravely challenging
Rights Council in Geneva the Duterte administration’s
as Western meddling in murderous ‘war on drugs,’”
Philippine government af- said Nicholas Bequelin of
fairs and questioned the Amnesty International.
validity of the narrow vote. Presidential spokesman Sal-
A former police chief said vador Panelo questioned
he was ready to have his the resolution’s validity,
head chopped off if the kill- saying only 18 nations in
ings were state-sponsored. Human rights advocates display placards during a news conference following United Nations the 47-member U.N. body
About 6,600 people, most Human Rights Council’s resolution in Geneva, Friday, July 12, 2019 in suburban Quezon city, voted for it.
of them accused of petty northeast of Manila, Philippines. “The resolution demon-
drug crimes, have been Associated Press strates how the Western
killed in the crackdown that vised speeches and en- asked the U.N. High Com- Separately, an Internation- powers are scornful of our
Duterte launched as his couraged law enforcers to missioner for Human Rights al Criminal Court prosecu- sovereign exercise of pro-
centerpiece project when shoot suspects who fight to prepare a comprehen- tor is examining information tecting our people from
he took office in mid-2016. back. sive report on the Philip- about the drug killings. the scourge of prohibited
But nongovernment groups He has warned that the pines. “The door of domestic in- drugs,” Panelo said.
claim a much higher death crackdown will be more The resolution called for vestigation may have been “The resolution is gro-
toll, including many sus- dangerous for suspects in Philippine government co- shut, but the windows of tesquely one-sided, outra-
pects killed by motorcycle- the final three years of his operation, “including by fa- international scrutiny are geously narrow and mali-
riding gunmen who human six-year term. cilitating country visits and beginning to open up to- ciously partisan.”
rights groups suspect were The U.N. Human Rights preventing and refraining ward justice for the Filipino Sen. Ronald dela Rosa,
deployed by police. Council voted 18-14 with 15 from all acts of intimidation people,” said Sen. Leila de a former national police
Duterte and the police abstentions Thursday to ap- or retaliation.” Lima, Duterte’s most vocal chief who first enforced
have denied authorizing prove the Iceland-initiated Duterte, a former prosecu- critic, who was jailed two the drug crackdown, said
extrajudicial killings. resolution, which called on tor, has repeatedly lashed years ago on drug charges he was not afraid to be in-
However, he has repeat- the Philippine government out at U.N. human rights ex- she said were fabricated to vestigated and that police
edly threatened drug sus- to take all steps to prevent perts critical of his anti-drug silence her. never tolerated extrajudi-
pects with death in tele- extrajudicial killings and campaign. While the U.N.-proposed cial killings. q
S. Korea proposes UN probe over Japanese sanctions claims

By TONG-HYUNG KIM Tokyo last week tightened Kim said the Seoul govern-
Associated Press the approval process for ment proposes Japan ac-
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — Japanese shipments of cept an inquiry by the U.N.
South Korea said Friday it photoresists and other sen- or another international
wants an investigation by sitive materials to South body over the export con-
the United Nations or an- Korea, saying such materi- trols of both countries to
other international body als can be exported only end “needless arguments”
as it continues to reject to trustworthy trading part- and to clearly prove wheth-
Japanese claims that Seoul ners. er the Japanese claims are
could not be trusted to The move, which could po- true or not.
faithfully implement sanc- tentially hurt South Korean “If the result shows that
tions against North Korea. technology companies our government has done
Kim You-geun, deputy that manufacture semi- nothing wrong, the Japa-
chief of South Korea’s presi- conductors and display nese government should
dential national security of- screens used in TVs and not only apologize but
fice, said South Korea has smartphones, has triggered also immediately withdraw
been thoroughly imple- Kim You-geun, deputy chief of South Korea’s presidential a full-blown diplomatic dis- the exports restrictions that
national security office, speaks during a press conference at the
menting U.N. sanctions presidential Blue House in Seoul, South Korea, Friday, July 12, pute between the coun- have the characteristics
against North Korea over 2019. tries that further soured re- of a (political) retaliation.
its nuclear weapons pro- Associated Press lations long troubled over There also should be a thor-
gram. He demanded that Minister Shinzo Abe and legal transfers of sensitive Japan’s brutal colonial rule ough investigation on (any)
Japan provide evidence his conservative aides that materials from South Korea of Korea before the end of Japanese violation,” he
for claims made by Prime there may have been il- to North Korea. World War II. said. q