Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte threatens to imprison those who refuse to be vaccinated against covid-19

(Reuters) – Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte threatened to jail people who refuse to vaccinate against covid-19, as his country battles one of the worst coronavirus outbreaks in Asia, with more than 1.3 million cases and 23,000 deaths.

“You choose, get vaccinated or I will have you imprisoned,” Duterte said in a televised speech on Monday, following reports of poor attendance at various vaccination centers in the capital Manila.

Duterte’s statements contradict those of his health officials, who have said that while people are urged to receive the Covid-19 vaccine, it is voluntary.

“Don’t get me wrong, there is a crisis in this country,” Duterte said. “It just infuriates me that the Filipinos don’t listen to the government.”

As of June 20, Philippine authorities had vaccinated 2.1 million people with two doses, moving slowly toward the government’s goal of immunizing up to 70 million people this year, in a country with a population of 110 million. .

Duterte, who has been criticized for his tough approach to containing the virus, also upheld his decision not to allow schools to reopen.

ICC investigation into the war on drug trafficking

In the same speech, Duterte lashed out at the International Criminal Court (ICC), after a prosecutor from that court asked the Court for permission to conduct a full investigation into the murders that occurred during the drug war in the Philippines.

Duterte, who canceled the Philippines’ membership in the founding treaty of the ICC in March 2018, repeated that he will not cooperate with the investigation, calling the ICC “bulls ** t” (nonsense).

Why would I defend myself or face an accusation before white people. They must be crazy, “said Duterte, who after winning the presidency in 2016, unleashed an anti-drug campaign in which thousands of people have died.

Human rights groups claim authorities have summarily executed drug suspects, but Duterte maintained that those killed had violently resisted arrest.

The ICC spokesman, Fadi El Abdallah, was asked about this: “The court is an independent judicial institution and does not comment on political statements.”