Duterte admits ordering police: ‘Encourage criminals to fight back, kill when they resist’

Metro Manila, Philippines – Former President Rodrigo Duterte has repeatedly claimed that he ordered policemen to kill drug suspects only in self-defense, but in a Senate hearing, he admitted to urging cops to “encourage the criminals” to fight back.

Facing a congressional hearing on his bloody war on drugs for the first time, Duterte challenged lawmakers to ask former police chiefs “kung may utos ba ako na patayin ‘yung tao na nakatali ‘yong paa pati ‘yong kamay sa likod, or assassinate them (if I ever gave an order to kill a person whose feet and hands are tied behind their back, or to assassinate them).”

Duterte recalled his directive to the police, both during his time as president and as former mayor of Davao City.

“Ang sinabi ko ganito: prangkahan tayo, encourage the criminals to fight, encourage them to draw their guns… ‘pagka lumaban, patayin ninyo para matapos na ang problema ko sa ciudad ko,” Duterte said.

[Translation: What I said was this: Let’s be straightforward: encourage the criminals to fight, encourage them to draw their guns… if they resist, kill them to solve my problem in my city.]

“Nung nag presidente ako, ganoon din sa command conference diyan sa Malacanang, yan ang utos ko,” he added.

[Translation: When I became president, it was the same during the command conference in Malacañang; that was my order.]

Death squad

In the same breath, Duterte referred to former Davao police chiefs, including Senator Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa and PBGen Vicente Danao (ret.) as part of the “death squad.”

“Because they were police directors handling the controlling crimes in the city. So ‘pag sinabi mong death squad, it’s a very loose term,” he said.

Danao said he never received a kill order, adding that he believes Duterte was “just joking.”

Dela Rosa said the term "Davao Death Squad," known for vigilante killings, came only from the media.

After attending the hearing for more than eight hours, Duterte repeatedly referenced the death squad, claiming at one point that he has his “own death squad” with seven members.

Opposition Senator Risa Hontiveros called this a “bombshell admission,” but Duterte retracted it later in the hearing.