French newspaper calls Duterte ‘serial killer’

MANILA, Philippines – A French newspaper has called President Duterte a “serial killer president” for his bloody war on drugs, sparking protests from his supporters.

The French daily Liberation’s front-page report is the latest criticism from the foreign media of the Duterte administration’s war on drugs, which has drawn international flak for human rights violations and alleged summary killings.

In an interview yesterday with dzMM, Interior Secretary Mike Sueno said calling Duterte a serial killer is “too much.”

“They don’t understand our problems,” Sueno said.

The article, with the headline “Rodrigo Duterte, the serial killer president,” alleged that death squads in Davao helped the former mayor rid the city of rebels.

In a statement, presidential spokesperson Ernesto Abella said the article “was irresponsible and shows a lack of understanding of local conditions.”

The latest death toll in the war on drugs is nearly 3,700. Police operations accounted for less than half of the deaths, while the rest were reportedly committed by vigilante groups allegedly empowered by the state.

But Sueno criticized the use of the term “extrajudicial killings,” which he said means “just any killing is being condoned by government,” when many of the drug suspects were killed because they fought with the police. “As for the others, they’re wiping out each other because they’re afraid of being pointed to,” he added.