ISTANBUL

The former president of the Philippines on Monday took “full responsibility” for the war on drugs.

It was not about killing people “but protecting them,” Rodrigo Duterte told a Senate hearing in a first such case.

“It wasn’t a perfect one, there were many mistakes. Maybe there were a lot of crimes,” said the 79-year-old president, who looked frail and was supported by aides while entering the Senate conference room to testify.

Manila launched the infamous war on drugs under Duterte in 2016.

Later in 2018, Duterte announced that his country would withdraw from the Rome Statute, which established the International Criminal Court (ICC), effective March 2019.

In September 2021, the ICC opened a probe into alleged crimes against humanity committed during the war on drugs between Nov. 1, 2011 and March 16, 2019.

It halted the probe on Nov. 18, 2021, after Manila raised objections. The ICC, however, has rejected objections by Manila.

“I just want to leave this to the Filipino people. I’d never have another chance maybe in the future. But for all the successes and mistakes, I and I alone take full legal and moral responsibility. That’s what I’m leaving to you all,” said Duterte in a bold admission.

Hundreds of people were killed during the war on illegal drugs, many of whom are said to be innocents.

“My mandate as president of the republic was to protect the country and the Filipino people. Do not question my policies, because I offer no apologies, no excuses. I did what I had to do, and whether you believe it or not, I did it for my country,” said Duterte, who completed his term in 2022, while the war on drugs continued under his successor President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.

According to a monitoring project, known as Dahas, run by the University of the Philippines, at least five people were killed in the ongoing war on drug war between Oct. 8 and 15.

Duterte also recalled that he had directed the police not to abuse their powers but they should “repel the aggression only in self-defense.”