DFA: Leni UN video message needs verification

MANILA, Philippines - The video message of Vice President Leni Robredo on alleged drug-related extrajudicial killings in the Philippines requires verification and was only a “side event” and not part of the official proceedings of the 60th Session of the United Nations Commission on Narcotic Drugs (UN-CND), the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said yesterday.

The DFA said it supported the official participation of the Philippines in the UN event held on March 13-17 in Vienna, Austria. Officials from the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA), the Dangerous Drugs Board (DDB) and the Philippine Permanent Mission to the UN in Vienna attended the event.

The showing of Robredo’s video message was included in the “side events” during the March 16 session. Side events are activities organized outside the formal UN program.

“The Philippines respects fundamental freedoms, including the right of everyone to speak freely on any topic. However, freedom of expression is a right that comes with the responsibility to ensure that facts are verified and unfounded allegations from questionable sources are avoided,” the DFA said in a statement.

“In this regard, elements in the Vice President’s side event statement need to be verified, as already earlier stated by the presidential spokesperson on the matter,” the DFA said, referring to Ernesto Abella.

In the video, the Vice President issued a strong rebuke of President Duterte’s bloody war on drugs.

She said the drug problem is a public health issue that cannot be solved “with bullets alone.”

More than 8,000 people have died since Duterte began his war on drugs shortly after assuming office in July.

“The government is investigating the veracity of allegations of drug-related extrajudicial killings, which are being undertaken precisely in strict adherence to due process and the rule of law,” the DFA said, noting this was the same message conveyed by the Philippine Permanent Mission to the UN shortly after the Vice President’s remarks were shown.

“The Philippine government has pursued a balanced and holistic approach to the drug issue in all its facets – prevention, education, enforcement, rehabilitation and reintegration,” the DFA said. “The five pillars of supply reduction, demand reduction, alternative development, civic awareness and regional and international cooperation inform the Philippines’ mission against illicit drugs.”