"The issue of human rights did not arise. It was not brought
up," said spokesperson for Philippine president
Though
presented with several opportunities to do so, President Donald Trump
reportedly did not raise any concerns about
human rights abuses or the "bloodstained" drug war
being carried out by Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte during a face-to-face
meeting on Monday.
"The
issue of human rights did not arise. It was not brought up," said Harry
Roque, a Duterte's spokesperson, after the two leaders met privately for
bilateral talks.
"It
was President Duterte who brought up with President Trump the drug menace in
the Philippines, and the US president appeared sympathetic and did not have any
official position on the matter but was merely nodding his head."
Ahead
of the talks, Phelim Kine, deputy director of Human Rights Watch's Asia
division, told the New York Times he predicted the world
would likely "see an alpha-male bromance between the two... A lot of the
issues that underpin the U.S.-Philippine relations will go unaddressed, and one
of those will be rule of law."
Kine
later said the photograph of Trump twisting his face as he held hands with
Duterte over the weekend should "live in infamy."
