Hong Kong protesters blast ‘monster’ Duterte but president is nowhere in sight

Amid high security and huge barricades, about 50 protesters held banners and chanted slogans at a spot a five-minute walk from Philippine leader’s hotel

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Protesters in Hong Kong act out the scene at an extrajudicial killing in the Philippines. Photo: Sam Tsang

Raquel Carvalho

Published: 3:30pm, 12 Apr 2018Updated: 8:27pm, 12 Apr 2018

Dozens gathered at a demonstration against Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte in Hong Kong on Thursday.

Amid high security and huge barricades, about 50 protesters held banners and chanted slogans accusing the president, who is on a three-day visit to the city, of not respecting human rights or fulfilling his electoral promises, including creating jobs in their home country.

“From a populist president, he has become a mass murderer,” Eman Villanueva, spokesman for the Asian Migrants Coordinating Body, said, referring to the war on drugs launched by Duterte about two years ago.

According to Human Rights Watch, more than 12,000 suspected drug users and dealers are thought to have died in the “drug war”, including an estimated 4,000 during operations led by the police and the remainder by “unidentified gunmen”.

Filipino and migrant worker groups protest in Tsim Sha Tsui. Photo: Sam Tsang

“Most of those killed are poor. They are accused of selling drugs but there is no due process. People are killed, thrown and left in the streets,” he said.