Dupage Policy Journal

Rep. Randy Hultgren (R-IL) and Rep. James McGovern (D-MA), co-chairs the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission, condemned Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte for threatening to ban them from the county, according to a recent statement.

“As Co-Chairs of the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission of the U.S. Congress, we have encouraged Mr. Duterte to reconsider his policies in keeping with his country’s obligations under international law,” Hultgren and McGovern said in a statement. “His most recent response was to threaten to ban each of us from traveling to his country.”

Hultgren and McGovern said in the statement that Duterte’s security forces have killed thousands of people in a brutal campaign against drugs. The lawmakers urged President Donald Trump to raise the issue of human rights violations with Duterte during his state visit to the Philippines, leading to Duterte’s warning that he would ban them from the country.

Rep. Randy Hultgren (R-IL)

“Today we are stating clearly that ‘sovereignty’ does not give governments free rein to kill their own people at will,” Hultgren and McGovern said in their statement. “We will continue to stand up for human rights and the rule of law in the Philippines and everywhere else in the world, in keeping with American and international values. We urge Mr. Duterte to join us in that endeavor. Should the situation in the Philippines improve, it will be our pleasure to recognize that the next time we hold a hearing on that country.”