US Shifted Millions Of Dollars Away From Philippine’ Police Anti-Drug Program Over Human Rights Concern
Millions of dollars for Philippines law enforcement have been shifted by the United States away from police anti-drug program over human rights concern.
On Monday (November 28, 2016), State Department officials said that U.S has shifted the money away from police drug control programs in the Philippines since the war on drugs amid Extrajudicial Killing (EJK) in the country has started in July 2016, under the administration of President Rodrigo Duterte.
Duterte’s anti-illegal drug campaign has been criticized by U.S President Barack Obama, European Union (EU), and several human rights groups due to the increasing EJK incidents happening in the country. US officials expressed their deep concern regarding this thing but Duterte launch series of tirades against Obama after these criticisms.
Duterte takes over the country’s highest position on June 30, 2016, since then, his war on drugs have already taken the lives of more than 2, 500 people, according to the figures shown by the authorities. Most of them were slain during police counter-narcotics operations but the rest of the victims were believed victims of vigilante killings.
In a news briefing, State Department spokesman John Kirby said that US State Department assistance for the police force in the country was shifted from drug control into maritime security and human rights training for the national police.
In September, $4.5 million was shifted to the Philippine Coast Guard and Bureau of Fisheries and $500, 000 was used to human rights effort, which has a total of $5 million that was allocated for law enforcement program. Kirby also said that the State Department will pursue to support human rights and maritime securities.
The Philippines has been receiving hundred million dollars from the United States in form of military aid, foreign aid, and developments assistance. Our country is the third largest Asian recipient of US military assistance after Afghanistan and Pakistan.
U.S Senator Ben Cardin has blocked the plan of United States to sell their 26, 000 assault rifles to the Philippine National Police (PNP) over the human rights violations allegedly committed by the Philippines.
