Philippines police may have killed tens of thousands with 'near impunity' in drug war – UN

Campaign of encouragement by high-level officials may have been seen by police as ‘permission to kill’, says damning report

Tens of thousands of people may have been killed in the war on drugs since mid-2016 in the Philippines, amid “near impunity” for police and incitement to violence by top officials, the United Nations said on Thursday.

The drugs crackdown, launched by President Rodrigo Duterte after winning election on a platform of crushing crime, has been marked by police orders and high-level rhetoric that may have been interpreted as “permission to kill”, it said.

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from World news | The Guardian https://ift.tt/30abjwf