“License to Kill”

Shortly after the November election of Donald Trump as US president, Duterte claimed that
President-elect Trump had endorsed his anti-drug campaign during a telephone call,
reputedly telling Duterte that he was conducting his anti-drug campaign “in the right
way.” 330 The phone call was one of several Trump undertook after his election without
seeking advice from the State Department, a break with past practice. A statement from
the Trump transitional team did not dispute Duterte’s characterization of the phone
conversation, noting only that the two had “noted the long history of friendship” between
their countries and would work closely on “matters of shared interest and concern.” 331
During the January 11, 2017 US Senate confirmation hearing for Secretary of State Rex
Tillerson, Tillerson refused to criticize Duterte’s abusive drug war and instead indicated
that ensuring close ties to the Philippine government would be his top priority. 332 When
asked by Senator Marco Rubio whether the several thousand Filipinos killed was “the right
way to conduct an anti-drug campaign,” Tillerson responded by saying that “the US and
the Philippines have a longstanding friendship, and [it’s] important we keep that in
perspective in engaging with the Philippines, and they have been an ally, and we need to
make sure they stay an ally.” 333
On January 26, Philippine Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana announced that the United
States would proceed with an upgrade and expansion of Philippine military base facilities
in 2017. 334 Lorenzana said that work was part of the bilateral Enhanced Defense
Cooperation Agreement, a 2014 pact negotiated under former President Benigno Aquino III.
330 Felipe Villamor, “Rodrigo Duterte says Donald Trump endorses his violent antidrug campaign,” New York Times,
December 3, 2016, https://www.nytimes.com/2016/12/03/world/asia/philippines-rodrigo-duterte-donald-trump.html?_r=0.
331 Martin Petty and David Brunnstrom, “Duterte says felt rapport with Trump, assures US-Philippines ties intact,” Reuters,
December 3, 2016, http://www.reuters.com/article/us-philippines-usa-idUSKBN13R20P.
332 “Rush transcript: Rex Tillerson’s confirmation hearing,” CNN Newsroom, January 11, 2017,
http://edition.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/1701/11/cnr.06.html. See also, Justin Heifetz, “Tillerson refuses to condemn Duterte’s
war on drugs,” CNN, January 12, 2016, http://edition.cnn.com/2017/01/11/politics/tillerson-philippines-duterte/.
333 Ibid.
334 Manuel Mogato, “Philippines says US military to upgrade bases, defense deal intact,” Reuters, January 26, 2017,
http://www.reuters.com/article/us-philippines-usa-defence-idUSKBN15A18Z (accessed January 26, 2016).
101 HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH | MARCH 2017