(Eagle News) — Foreign Affairs Secretary Alan Peter Cayetano told the 73rd United Nations General Assembly in New York of the Philippine government’s efforts in instituting reforms to protect law-abiding Filipinos in the country, as he defended the Duterte administration’s war on drugs and criminality.
Cayetano said that the administration of President Rodrigo Duterte is trying to “salvage” the Philippines, and preventing it from becoming a narco-state.
“As a sovereign and democratic country led by a duly-elected President, we are on track in salvaging our deteriorating country from becoming a narco-state,” Secretary Cayetano said in delivering the Philippine Statement during the UN assembly.
“The Philippines and President Duterte are instituting all these reforms to be able to protect the rights of every single Filipino and every single human being living in the Philippines,” he said.
Cayetano explained that the Philippines is protecting human rights, and is not turning its back on the Universal Declaration of Human Rights adopted by the UN General Assembly in 1948.
But he said that in protecting the rights of the country’s citizens, the rights of law-abiding Filipinos and of other citizens residing in the country are the primary concern.
Cayetano told member states authorities in the Philippines will always choose to protect the rights of law-abiding citizens and law enforcers over the rights of drug lords and criminals who, he said, seek to kill and destroy.
“But in cases where we have to choose between protecting the rights of a law abiding citizen and the law enforcer versus the drug lord or criminal who seeks to kill and destroy, it is clear that we will protect the former—the law enforcer and the
law-abiding citizen,” Cayetano said.
“Wouldn’t you do the same? Which country, which leader wouldn’t do the same and protect your citizens and protect your law enforcers?” he asked.
Cayetano stressed to world leaders that although there may be different views on the country’s efforts to protect human rights, it doesn’t alter the fact that the Philippines is still striving to protect the rights of all Filipinos.
“We may sometimes differ in how we express ourselves, yet this should not be interpreted as turning our backs on the universal declaration on human rights. On the contrary, we are instituting all of these reforms to be able to protect the rights of every single Filipino,” Cayetano said.
“Yes, rights of all Filipinos, if that is at all possible,” he added.
The DFA Secretary also touched on the rights of migrants, saying issues on migration cannot be swept under the rug but should be discussed openly, frankly and thoroughly.
“The Global Compact on Migration is a huge step in the right direction. And this huge step will be even a bigger one if we can get everyone on board,” he said in referring to the international agreement that UN member-states will be adopting in Morocco in December.
At the same time, Cayetano called on member-states to put the interests of the global community above their national interests.
“The UN is the place, the venue of great opportunity, of putting action to our Faith, of changing the world for the better,” he said.
“That is, of course, if we can transcend our personal and sometimes national interest, for the interest of the global community, or simply put for the greater good.”
“Faith without action is dead. And the United Nations is not a place to bury our dead, it is a place to rise up, to resurrect our hopes and dreams of a better world,” he stated.
Cayetano said member-states must exert efforts to connect, to emphasize commonalities and not differences, and to think more as global citizens.
“We don’t always have to act as a community but neither can we ignore the fact that there are many problems which can only be solved by a united global community,” he added.
Last year, Cayetano also spoke at the UN General Assembly as he read the 15-page speech of President Duterte before world leaders which also explained the government’s drug war.