Duterte Orders Shoot Dead Crowd Of 'Yelpful' During The Philippines Lockdown

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte (Wikimedia Commons)

JAKARTA - Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte warned that he would not play games in imposing a lockdown in his country. Duterte said he did not hesitate to shoot anyone who violated the provisions.

This threat was made by Duterte in the midst of the increasingly precarious COVID-19 situation. In a televised address, Duterte also discussed discrimination against medical workers in his country. Duterte said it was a serious crime that would not be tolerated.

Furthermore, Duterte said, it is very important for everyone to cooperate and follow home quarantine measures. Meanwhile, the authorities are trying to slow transmission and keep the country's health system from becoming overwhelmed.

The Philippines itself has confirmed 2,311 cases of COVID-19. A total of 96 people were declared dead and 50 people were successfully cured. “It's getting worse. So once again I tell you how serious this problem is and you have to listen, "Duterte, reported by Reuters, Thursday, April 2.

Manila City (Unsplash)

"My orders to the police and military, if there is a problem and there is a point where they fight and your life is in danger, shoot them to death ... Is that understood? Die, instead of causing trouble. I will bury you," added Duterte.

The comments came after media reports of harassment and multiple arrests on Wednesday April 1 from residents in a poor area of Manila protesting against government food aid. Activists ridiculed Duterte for his fierce rhetoric and accused him of inviting violence and taking justice into his own hands.

With this call, Duterte is considered to have viewed the violators of the lockdown as the perpetrators of drug crimes. The order of origin to shoot this time is similar to that shown by Duterte in the war on drugs, where police and mysterious gunmen have killed thousands of people accused of using or selling drugs.

Stigma problems

The Philippine government has also responded to the medical community's protests about social stigma and hospital workers suffering from physical abuse and discrimination. According to Duterte, this case must be stopped immediately.

Many people in the medical community have been stigmatized for handling COVID-19. Several cases stated that many medical workers had experiences of being doused with chlorine by unknown people for fear they would pass the virus on to other people.

Such stigma is something that the Philippine Government cannot handle. Even though the medical team has been working very hard amidst a shortage of protective equipment and testing capacity.

However, the Philippine government says it has opened more than 15,000 laboratories for tests. Philippine Health Minister Maria Rosario Vergeire added that many hospitals are seeking government approval to function as testing centers.

"We have six more laboratories to carry out tests. We are also doing contact tracing to find people who may be infected," said Rosario.

Health workers in other developing countries with poor public health systems, such as Myanmar and India, have also experienced similar cases, namely discrimination against medical workers. The failure of the authorities to educate and manage useful information on social media is the cause.