Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte needs a “psychiatric evaluation,” according to UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra'ad al-Hussein. He called for the UN Human Rights Council to take a stand against the leader.
The recommendation comes after Duterte called for a UN investigator, a former Philippines lawmaker and four former Catholic priests to be declared as "terrorists." Zeid said the defamatory accusations by Duterte “cannot go unanswered".
"The UN Human Rights Council must take a position.These attacks cannot go unanswered," said Zeid during a news conference on Friday, reports Reuters. "He needs to submit himself to some sort of psychiatric examination. This kind of comment is unacceptable, unacceptable.”
The group is among the more than 600 alleged communist guerrillas Duterte wants declared
Terrorists, Reuters reports. They are accused of “using acts of terror” to sow fear and panic to overthrow the government, according to a petition filed in a Manila court.
Victoria Tauli-Corpuz, appointed in 2014 as UN special rapporteur on the rights of indigenous peoples, was listed in the petition as a senior member of the Maoist rebel group. Also listed were four former Catholic priests and former congressman Satur Ocampo.
READ MORE: Duterte says order to shoot female rebels in the vagina was ‘sarcasm’
The Justice Ministry had previously asked the court to declare the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) and its armed wing, the New People's Army (NPA), as "terrorist" bodies.
Duterte recently terminated peace talks with the Maoist rebels, citing a betrayal of his trust and ongoing hostilities during negotiations.
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