The president of the Philippines has already faced domestic and international backlash over his controversial ‘war on drugs', which has claimed the lives of thousands of people involved in the production and distribution of drugs. He is also known for his controversial statements and promises made during his public speeches.
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte slammed the ongoing decades-long guerilla war waged by the Maoist New People's Army (NPA), an armed wing of the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP), and vowed to eradicate the group's hit-squads in his speech on 27 November. In order to do that, Duterte suggested creating his own ‘death squads' akin ‘sparrow units', used by the NPA in the 1970s and 80s to attack police forces.
‘What I lack is my own sparrow. That is where [NPA] has an edge… So I will create my own sparrow, Duterte Death Squad against the sparrow […] I will match their talent also for assassinating people', Duterte said.
Duterte didn't elaborate on his idea of creating the special unit, including on how it will end the long-lasting guerilla war, which has already claimed the lives of 30,000, according to official records.
His initiative has found little support among his left-wing opponents, who claim the president is planning to use the ‘death squad to eliminate his critics'. Jose Maria Sison, the founder of the CPP, claimed in an interview with the country's ANC TV channel that the ‘sparrow units', Duterte…
