President Rodrigo Duterte has been called an admirer of Adolf Hitler and an unwanted guest, among other things, by a top Israeli newspaper.
The criticisms were published in an editorial by the Haaretz newspaper that coincided with his visit to Israel.
Another newspaper, the Times of Israel, also protested Duterte’s visit.
The editorial against Duterte is titled “A Hitler Admirer at Yad Vashem,” in reference to Duterte’s remarks in October 2016 when he compared his deadly drug war to Hitler’s genocide of at least six million Jews. Duterte said then “Hitler massacred three-million Jews … there’s three-million drug addicts [in the Philippines]. There are. I’d be happy to slaughter them.”
Duterte apologized for his remarks through his then-spokesman Ernesto Abella, who maintained that the President was willing to kill as many as three-million “criminals.”
“Israel has never been choosy in its international relations. In fact, it has an impressive record of relations with dubious regimes and leaders, and its weapons sales to the very worst regimes have been previously reported,” the editorial read.
“Under the shadow of Duterte’s visit, Israel once again proves it’s willing to overlook leaders’ human rights violations for the sake of opportunities for arms deals and defense contracts.
Under the shadow of Duterte’s visit, Israel must disclose the nature and scope of its arms trade with countries accused of human rights violations. The president of the Philippines isn’t a wanted guest here, and his visit is a shameful diplomatic stain.”
The editorial viewed Israel’s decision to “roll out the red carpet” for Duterte as something done in exchange for a mess of pottage that includes abstaining or supporting Israel in a few UN votes, thus giving Duterte an absolution for his anti-Semitic remarks.
“Duterte has been accused of human rights violations in his own country under the cover of his war on drugs and organized crime, which has presumably included ‘social cleansing’ operations and the murder of thousands of people without a trial.
“The man who compared himself to Hitler, boasting that he’d be happy to slaughter each and every one of the millions of drug addicts in the Philippines, will, as is usual on such visits, tour the Yad Vashem Holocaust remembrance center, and also a memorial in honor of Filipinos who saved Jews during the Holocaust. Macon Ramos-Araneta
“It’s hard to say that Duterte, a friend of United States President Donald Trump who has also been welcomed in other countries, is worse than others with whom Israel has maintained official or secret ties. Yet this time, too, the government doesn’t seem to have agonized over the question of whether Israel should go out of its way to host a man like Duterte with all the trappings of respect.”
Duterte, in a speech before the Filipino community, said he does not believe in the god of his critics.
“I did not say I do not believe in God. What I said is that I do not believe in your God,” Duterte said, eliciting cheers from the crowd in a Jerusalem hotel compost mostly of Israel-based Filipinos.
A member of Duterte’s delegation, Senator Richard Gordon will present to the Knesset, the Israeli parliament, Philippine Senate Resolution 757, which seeks to reaffirm and strengthen Philippines-Israel relations by forging an association among parliamentarians from the two countries.
The resolution, filed by Gordon and adopted by the Senate, hopes to pave the way for regular discussions on matters of mutual interest and areas of mutual cooperation between the two nations by establishing a Philippines-Israel Parliamentary Friendship Association.
Gordon and the whole delegation will also meet with the Magen David Adom, Israel’s national emergency medical, disaster, ambulance, and blood bank service, in the hope of gaining more knowledge from their expertise in responding to disasters and terrorist activities.
