Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has drawn condemnation from human rights watchdogs and women's groups, after he said that female communist rebels in the country should be shot in their private parts as punishment for fighting the government.

Duterte's declaration "is just the latest in a series of misogynist, derogatory and demeaning statements he has made about women," Human Rights Watch said in a statement sent to Al Jazeera on Monday.

"It encourages state forces to commit sexual violence during armed conflict, which is a violation of international humanitarian law," Carlos Conde, a Human Rights Watch representative in the Philippines, said.

According to a government transcript of a speech he delivered on February 7, Duterte said Philippine soldiers should not kill women rebel fighters.

"We will just shoot your [genitals], so that if there are no more [genitals], you would be useless," Duterte said using a word in his native Visayan, a language spoken in central and southern Philippines.

The president also chastised female fighters for abandoning their children and families, in order to join the communist movement.

Emmi de Jesus, a Congress member representing the Gabriela Women's Party, denounced Duterte's "nasty remark", saying it contributes to the culture of "impunity" in the country.

De Jesus said the president "further confirms himself as the most dangerous macho-fascist in the government right now".

She added that Duterte is taking "state terrorism against women and the people to a whole new level", and pushing soldiers "to commit more bloody human rights violations and grave abuses of international humanitarian law."

Spokesman: Duterte's jokes 'funny'

Duterte has been under fire several times for making misogynistic comments.

In January, during his visit to India, he told a group of Indian and Filipino business leaders in New Delhi that he would like to attract visitors to the Philippines by offering "42 virgins".

In July 2017, he also made rape jokes while talking about Miss Universe.

Two months earlier, Duterte told soldiers fighting Muslim armed fighters in Marawi that they could rape up to three women without getting punished.

"I'll imprison you myself," he said, referring to soldiers who commit violations. Then he said: "If you had raped three, I will admit it, that's on me."

In the lead-up to his presidential election win in 2016, critics were outraged when he recalled a 1989 prison riot in which an Australian missionary was killed, and inmates had lined up to rape her.

Duterte said the victim was "beautiful" and as mayor of Davao City, where the riot took place, he should have been first in line. He later apologised and said he did not intend to disrespect women or rape victims.

On Wednesday, Harry Roque, Duterte's spokesman, defended the president's string of sexist comments, saying critics should lighten up.

"You know, sometimes, these feminists are really a bit OA," Roque said using the Filipino term to mean over-acting.

"I mean, that's funny. Come on. Just laugh," he told a pro-Duterte social media personality, adding that people "identify with his humour".

The Duterte administration has been engaged in an on and off peace negotiations with the communist rebels in the Philippines, since he came into office in mid-2016.

But following new clashes between government forces and rebel fighters in 2017, Duterte signed a proclamation labelling the communist fighters as a "terrorist" group, essentially breaking off the peace process.

He has also ordered the arrest of several community leaders.

The Communist Party of the Philippines launched a rebellion in 1968 that has so far claimed the lives of more than 30,000 people.</s>Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte last week bragged that he had ordered troops to shoot female communist fighters in their vaginas, according to multiple reports, triggering a wave of criticism against the strongman when the remark was published Monday.

“Tell the soldiers, ‘There’s a new order coming from the mayor,'” Duterte, a former mayor, told an audience of approximately 200 former rebels in Malacañang. “We won’t kill you. We will just shoot your vagina.’”

“If there is no vagina, it would be useless,” Duterte added to laughter from the crowd, according to local reports.

The remarks were largely unreported until Monday because Duterte was speaking in his native language, the New York Times reported.

In its official transcript of the speech, Duterte’s communication office replaced the word “vagina” with a dash.

Once it was widely publicized, Duterte’s speech drew widespread condemnation, with critics charging that the leader’s penchant for offensiveness is no longer surprising.

The comment “is just the latest in a series of misogynist, derogatory, and demeaning statements he has mad about women,” Carlos H. Conde, a Human Rights Watch researcher, told the New York Times.

Conde added that encouraging state forces to sexually assault women during a conflict violates “international humanitarian law.”

Reaction in the Philippines was also swift. Congresswoman Emmi de Jesus, representing the Gabriela Women’s Party, said that Duterte was a “macho-fascist" who endorsed "state terrorism" against women, the Guardian reported.

"He has further presented himself as the epitome of misogyny and fascism rolled in one," she added.

Duterte, who once said that a gang rape victim was so “beautiful” that he wished he had “been first,” has sanctioned a wide-scale drug war marked by extrajudicial killings in the Philippines.

Last week, the prosecutor of the International Criminal Court said she is opening an investigation into alleged crimes by security officers in the Philippines.

Duterte has reportedly said he would not mind being imprisoned by the ICC as long as he was allowed conjugal visits from more than one women.</s>Filipino President Rodrigo Duterte said women who chose to fight for the communist group New People’s Army instead of having children should be shot in the genitals.

Duterte, who is known for his controversial orders to kill drug dealers, boasted about the shocking directive he gave when he was still the mayor of Davao City.

“Tell the soldiers, ‘There’s a new order coming from the mayor: We will not kill you. We will just shoot you in the vagina,’” he said last week.

He added that women would be “useless” without their genitals.

Human Rights Watch's Carlos H. Conde said Duterte's comments encourage "state forces to commit sexual violence during armed conflict, which is a violation of international humanitarian law.”

Emmi de Jesus, of the Gabriela Women’s Party, slammed Duterte as a “dangerous macho-fascist” and told local news sources, “He has further presented himself as the epitome of misogyny and fascism terribly rolled in one.”

Duterte’s spokesperson Harry Roque dismissed the ensuing furor as an overreaction from feminists.

“I mean, that’s funny. Come on. Just laugh,” Roque said.

The government has been embroiled in an ongoing conflict with communist rebels in the country, as peace talks stalled after Duterte declared the Communist Party and the New People’s Army terrorist organizations in 2017.</s>Feb. 12 (UPI) -- Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte told the country's soldiers to target female rebels in combat by shooting them in the genitals, drawing condemnation as his government faces a possible international investigation over alleged extrajudicial killings.

Duterte, addressing a group of former communist rebels Wednesday, referred to his time as mayor before becoming president and ordered the soldiers to render the women "useless" by shooting their vaginas.

"Tell the soldiers. 'There's a new order coming from the mayor. We won't kill you. We will just shoot your vagina,'" he said. "If there is no vagina, it would be useless."

His comments were met with laughter from the crowd and Duterte's spokesman, Harry Roque, last week accused women of "overreacting" to the president's "jokes."

"I mean, that's funny. Come on. Just laugh," Roque said.

Duterte's comments come as International Criminal Court prosecutor Fatou Bensouda said her office plans to examine Duterte's war on drugs after receiving reports of thousands of extrajudicial killings amid police anti-drug operations.

Duterte has a history of using foul language, and making crude, disparaging and violent comments about women and gay people, calling U.S. Ambassador to the Philippines Phillip Goldberg a "gay son of a bitch" in 2016.

Later that year he expressed regrets that a meeting with Barack Obama was canceled after he referred to the then-president using the Tagalog phrase for "son of a bitch."

Gabriela Women's Party, a feminist group, condemned Duterte as a "macho-fascist" and said his remark "takes state terrorism against women and the people to a whole new level."

"Duterte's latest nasty remark openly encourages violence against women, contributes to the impunity on such, and further confirms himself as the most dangerous macho-fascist in the government right now," Gabriela representative Emmi de Jesus said. "He has further presented himself as the epitome of misogyny and fascism terribly rolled in one."

Human Rights Watch researcher Carlos Conde also shared a statement describing Duterte's comments as "misogynist, derogatory and demeaning."

"It encourages state forces to commit sexual violence during armed conflict, which is a violation of international humanitarian law," Conde wrote.</s>MANILA — Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte should be taken seriously, but not literally, his spokesman said on Tuesday, after the controversial leader drew criticism for saying he once ordered soldiers to shoot female Maoist insurgents in the genitals.

"I have been saying again and again, do not take the president literally but take him seriously," presidential spokesman Harry Roque told reporters.

Roque said the context of Duterte's Feb. 7 remarks was that he was angry that communist insurgents had betrayed his trust and forced a peace process with the government to collapse. He said the president had repeatedly proven that welfare of women was a priority for Duterte.

Related: As Trump meets Duterte in Philippines, issue of rights comes up ‘briefly’

Speaking in his native Visayan dialect, Duterte was recalling an order he said he had given to troops when he was mayor of Davao City.

"Tell the soldiers. 'There's a new order coming from mayor. We won't kill you. We will just shoot your vagina."

A translation in an official transcript of the remarks omitted the word vagina.

Gabriela, a women's group represented in Congress, called Duterte "the most dangerous macho-facist in government" and said his remark "openly encourages violence against women and contributes to impunity on such".

"He has further presented himself as the epitome of misogyny and fascism terribly rolled into one," representative Emmi de Jesus said in a statement.

Related: What you need to know about Rodrigo Duterte

Human Rights Watch researcher Carlos Conde said Duterte's remark was "just the latest in a series of misogynist, derogatory and demeaning statements" about women that encouraged state forces to commit sexual violence.

Duterte is known for his informal style and his speeches frequently feature profanity, threats and jokes about taboo subjects, which offend some Filipinos, but are taken lightly by many.

It was not the first time Duterte's comments have angered women's groups.

He has several times joked about rape, upsetting activists and last year prompting Chelsea Clinton, the daughter of former U.S. President Bill Clinton and presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, to call him "a murderous thug with no regard for human rights".

The idea of being taken "seriously, not literally" has often been applied to U.S. President Donald Trump, ever since the 2016 campaign season.</s>Human rights groups condemned the Philippine president on Tuesday for saying that troops should shoot female communist rebels in the genitals to render them “useless,” which they said could encourage sexual violence and war crimes.

The left-wing group Karapatan said President Rodrigo Duterte “has distinguished himself as a frothing-in-the-mouth fascist who incites the worst violations of international humanitarian law.”

Duterte’s remarks “are but the latest of the series of this madman’s display of tyranny, lunacy and machismo,” Karapatan Secretary General Cristina Palabay said.

The U.S.-based group Human Rights Watch said the remark last week was the latest in a “series of misogynist, derogatory and demeaning statements he has made about women” that encourage state forces to commit sexual violence during armed conflicts.

In a rambling speech before surrendered communist rebels, Duterte spoke about the futility of their decades-old insurgency and how his administration can help them return to normal life.

Duterte asked why even women join the insurgency and abandon their families.

At one point, he said without elaborating: “Tell the soldiers. There’s a new order coming from the mayor. We won’t kill you. We will just shoot your vagina so that … if there is no vagina, it would be useless.”

The remarks elicited laughter from the audience.

Duterte spoke in the Bisaya dialect. An official transcript of the president’s speech issued by the government omitted the word “vagina” and expletives from his remarks.

A longtime mayor of southern Davao city, where he built a reputation for his extra-tough approach to criminality and his brash, often sex-laden remarks, Duterte has acknowledged his rough ways but suggested many Filipinos have come to accept him.

Western governments and human rights watchdogs have expressed alarm over his crackdown on illegal drugs, which has left thousands of mostly poor suspects dead. He has lashed out at critics, including European governments, which he told Monday “to go to hell” for imposing conditions on financial aid.

Duterte said he has told European officials he won’t attend an upcoming meeting between Southeast Asian and European leaders.

“They say that I have a bad mouth. It’s true. They say that I’m not a statesman, not fit for a president, and that’s true,” Duterte said in a speech Monday, referring to his critics. “But the problem here is that I won.”

Steve Rood, a Manila-based political analyst, said many Filipinos like Duterte’s unorthodox style and his charm when he talks to them in an intimate way, as if his speeches were not being broadcast.

With crime easing and recent public surveys showing satisfaction with Duterte’s administration, the president’s opponents may do better if they focus on issues such as traffic jams in the capital and rising rice prices, he said.

“A focus on President Duterte’s colorful language is not the productive way to engage the Philippine domestic audience,” Rood said.

“I think even if he curses a thousand a times, it’s OK with the people,” said Ramon Casiple, another analyst.

He said protests would have no major impact unless they’re backed by the masses, which hope Duterte’s tough approach will help him fight poverty and other social ills. “It’s hard to make a judgment now because his efforts are ongoing,” Casiple said.

For all the latest World News, download Indian Express App</s>Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte oversaw the destruction of several smuggled luxury vehicles during a ceremony on February 6, as part of a new policy to crack down on car smuggling. This footage was broadcast on the Presidential Communications Facebook page and was described as showing the destruction of 19 vehicles in Manila, as well as seven in Davao City and three in Cebu City. The ceremony came days after Duterte promised the destruction of the vehicles illegally brought to the country, the Philippine Star reported. Credit: Presidential Communications (Government of the Philippines) via Storyful

HUMAN rights groups have slammed Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte for encouraging violence against women when he said soldiers should shoot female rebels in their genitals.

Duterte made the remarks last Wednesday during a meeting with more than 200 former communist rebels who have surrendered, including 48 women.

In his speech, Duterte talked about female fighters and said that soldiers should “shoot their vaginas” because “without that, they are useless.”

Representative Emmi De Jesus of the Gabriela Women’s Party in Manila said the remarks only confirm that Duterte is “the most dangerous macho-fascist in the government right now.”

“He is dangerously pushing the fascist armed forces of the Philippines to commit more bloody human rights violations and grave abuses of international humanitarian law,” she said.

“He has further presented himself as the epitome of misogyny and fascism terribly rolled into one,” she added.

New York-based Human Rights Watch noted it was not the first time that Duterte has made “misogynist, derogatory and demeaning statements” about women.

“It encourages state forces to commit sexual violence during armed conflict, which is a violation of international humanitarian law,” it said.

Last month, Duterte came under fire for saying he would offer 42 virgins to attract tourists to visit the country.

In May last year, he told soldiers he would protect them against criminal charges even if they rape three women while implementing martial law in the southern region of Mindanao.</s>Filipino President Rodrigo Duterte has said women who choose to fight in the New People's Army rather than raise children should be shot in the genitals.

The president’s remarks from last week went largely unreported at the time since he was speaking his native Visayan language, the New York Times reported.

“Tell the soldiers, ‘There’s a new order coming from the mayor: We will not kill you. We will just shoot you in the vagina,’” Duterte said, referring to instructions he had given when serving as mayor of Davao City.

Duterte was speaking to former rebels when he expressed his frustration that women didn’t want to have and raise children, and instead wanted to join the communist rebel force that has been waging insurgency since 1969.

Philippines Representative Emmi de Jesus, of the Gabriela Women’s Party, said Duterte’s comments basically gave a green light for soldiers to violate women’s rights.

“He has further presented himself as the epitome of misogyny and fascism terribly rolled into one,” de Jesus said.

Duterte has come under fire before for making crude remarks about women. During his campaign for president in 2016, he made a joke about the rape and murder of an Australian missionary during a prison riot in Davao City in 1989. He also made sexual jokes and rumors to attack women who questioned his bloody war on drugs.

Leila de Lima, a senator and former justice minister who has been a vocal critic of Duterte, is in prison awaiting trial on bribery charges. At the hearings before her arrest Duterte disclosed embarrassing details of a romantic affair she had with her driver and bodyguard.</s>Human rights groups have criticised Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte for reportedly ordering his troops to shoot female rebels in the genitals to leave them “useless”, AP reported. The statement may encourage sexual violence and war crimes, the groups said.

The controversial leader made the comment while addressing a group of former communist leaders on February 7. “Tell the soldiers. There’s a new order coming from the mayor,” The Independent quoted Duterte as saying. “We won’t kill you. We will just shoot your vagina.” His spokesperson dismissed Duterte’s comments as “funny”.

The president “has distinguished himself as a frothing-in-the-mouth fascist who incites the worst violations of international humanitarian law”, Left-wing rights group Karapatan said.

Human Rights Watch described Duterte’s comment as the latest in a “series of misogynist, derogatory and demeaning statements he has made about women”.</s>HUMAN rights groups have slammed Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte for encouraging violence against women when he said soldiers should shoot female rebels in their genitals.

Duterte made the remarks last Wednesday during a meeting with more than 200 former communist rebels who have surrendered, including 48 women.

In his speech, Duterte talked about female fighters and said that soldiers should “shoot their vaginas” because “without that, they are useless.”

Representative Emmi De Jesus of the Gabriela Women’s Party in Manila said the remarks only confirm that Duterte is “the most dangerous macho-fascist in the government right now.”

“He is dangerously pushing the fascist armed forces of the Philippines to commit more bloody human rights violations and grave abuses of international humanitarian law,” she said.

“He has further presented himself as the epitome of misogyny and fascism terribly rolled into one,” she added.

New York-based Human Rights Watch noted it was not the first time that Duterte has made “misogynist, derogatory and demeaning statements” about women.

“It encourages state forces to commit sexual violence during armed conflict, which is a violation of international humanitarian law,” it said.

Last month, Duterte came under fire for saying he would offer 42 virgins to attract tourists to visit the country.

In May last year, he told soldiers he would protect them against criminal charges even if they rape three women while implementing martial law in the southern region of Mindanao.
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte calls for female communist rebels to be shot in the genitals. Duterte's comments are described as "a funny joke" by his spokesman, while drawing heavy criticism from others.