Duterte tells Obama: Go find meaning of 'dignity' in the dictionary
President Rodrigo Duterte on Friday lashed out anew at United States President Barack Obama as he explained his reaction to criticism of his administration's drug campaign.
Duterte explained that he was merely defending the country's dignity when he declared a break from the US in terms of foreign policy.
"Mr. Obama, what went wrong? Get your dictionary. Find out the right meaning of dignity," he said in a speech delivered at a regional convention of the Integrated Bar of the Philippines in Manila.
Duterte hit out at the US supposedly threatening to withhold aid from the Philippines because of the rising death toll of the government's drug war. He said the threat was the same as depicting him and the Filipinos like a dog on a leash as his master throws crumbs at a distance.
"Sabi ko, putang ina ninyo. Leche ninyo. Putang ina talaga kayo. Because you violated our dignity as a Filipino people," Duterte said.
"Matter of dignity... Huwag ninyo kaming ilagay na parang aso na matakot ako na mawalaan ng aid," he added to the applause of lawyers present.
Last September, Duterte made international headlines when he went on a profanity-laced tirade after he was asked about possibly discussing human rights issues with Obama at the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Summit in Laos.
Obama canceled the meeting with Duterte, while speaking out about the need for the Philippines to do the war on drugs "the right way." —JST/NB, GMA News