The United States should be more "circumspect" in its criticism of President Rodrigo Duterte’s war on drugs and on the alleged human rights violations in the country, an analyst said on Monday.
Political analyst and author Richard Heydarian said the U.S. should be more subtle in criticizing the Philippines, considering that it has alliances with autocratic countries such as Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Egypt.
“The U.S. also has to appreciate, you have a much more independent-minded leader here in the Philippines that doesn’t take the alliance with the United States for granted anymore,” he said in an interview on “Mornings@ANC.”
The U.S. Millennium Challenge Corporation earlier deferred a vote on the re-selection of Manila for the $433 million second grant it was set to give the Philippines.
The second funding grant would have run for five years throughout the term of Duterte.
Duterte, however, seemed unfazed by the loss of the grant and even threatened the repeal of the country’s Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA) which covers U.S. troops who are rotated in Philippines for military exercises.
Heydarian also thinks that contrary to the common notion that there is “disparity of values” between the U.S. and the Philippines, he believes that what is happening is a clash of methods in dealing with the war on drugs.
“What a lot of our partners want is that we deal with the issue of war on drugs with a different method a method that is more focused on rehabilitation and is more public health-oriented,” he said.
Heydarian also thinks that the U.S. underestimated Duterte’s tenacity to push forward his war on drugs.
“We need to make it clear to the Americans that they cannot continue to have the benefits of the past, the same kind of relationship with us and expect the current administration to be happy with that,” he said.
Heydarian also said Washington can help the Duterte administration improve its campaign against illegal drugs.
“Rehabilitation and the public health focus is the only way. It’s just a matter of time before this administration has to make that transition and the U.S. has to be partner in that transition and not just criticize it,” he said.
SOURCE :ANC
Did the U.S. underestimate Duterte?
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