Germany Foreign Office spokesman Rainer Breuer said on Friday that his ministry had called in the Philippine envoy to discuss comments by diplomat Teodore "Teddy Boy" Loscin Jr., defending 2016 statements from President Rodrigo Duterte concerning Adolf Hitler.

"Yesterday in the Foreign Office, there was a discussion with the Philippine enyoy, in which we again made our position clear. We also underlined that while we recognize the Philippines' right to prioritize fighting drug criminality, the so-called 'war on drugs' and the connected killings are totally unacceptable and represent serious violations of human rights," Rainer Breuer said at the government's daily briefing on Friday.

"The German government had criticized this Philippine approach, this campaign, from the start. We are in close consultation with our EU partners and we've brought this up several times at the UN Human Rights Council," Breuer said.

A diplomat at the Foreign Ministry told DW that the government was treating them as "unacceptable remarks," but that it had not issued a summons demanding that a diplomat come to answer for the comments.

'How Duterte expresses himself'

In an interview with German public broadcaster ARD, Teodore L. Locsin Jr. defended Duterte's 2016 description of himself as "the cousin of Hitler."

In the same speech, Duterte had also stated that "Hitler massacred three million Jews. Now there are three million drug addicts. I’d be happy to slaughter them."

Locsin was asked if he would apologize for this statement and refused, saying that it was simply "how [the President] expresses himself."

"Remember his policy, according to surveys, has inspired greater confidence. Why would we give up on that?"

Read more: Can anyone believe what Duterte says?

Philippines' war on drugs — Remembering the dead Daunting challenge Mimi Garcia holds the pictures of her son Richard and daughter-in-law Robilyn who were killed by masked vigilantes on motorbikes at their shanty home in Camarin, Caloocan city, on October 7, 2016. She faces the daunting responsibility of taking care of her two grandchildren while being jobless at the same time.

Philippines' war on drugs — Remembering the dead Brutal incidents Andres Fernandez and his son Wesley rest at an altar inside the family home in Bagong Silang, Caloocan. On October 4, 2016, two armed men in masks went inside the Fernandez home and pointed a gun at Wesley. They made him kneel as Andres tried to help. They responded by shooting at Andres first before killing Wesley.

Philippines' war on drugs — Remembering the dead Suspicious killings One of the children of alleged pusher Kenneth Trasmano lights a candle during the wake of his father in Manila. Kenneth was killed in a police undercover operation after allegedly fighting back on February 2, 2018. His family and neighbors claim the police forced them to leave their homes and get out of sight, and thereafter heard the gunshots.

Philippines' war on drugs — Remembering the dead Left alone A child holds the pictures of her deceased father Joseph and grandfather Marcelo. Marcelo was killed in a police operation inside their home on July 22, 2016. Her father was rounded up and taken by the police. His lifeless body was later found "salvaged" along a roadside.

Philippines' war on drugs — Remembering the dead Last message The picture shows letters written by children who have lost either one of their parents in the drug war, as part of their counselling session at Our Lady of Lourdes Parish in Camarin, Caloocan city.

Philippines' war on drugs — Remembering the dead Funeral march Family and friends walk the funeral procession of Rogelio Gilbuena and his common law wife Jenny Royo, who were both found dead (several hours apart) in different locations in Navotas city, Manila. Prior to their death, the couple were taken from their house in Navotas by 10 men who introduced themselves as police.

Philippines' war on drugs — Remembering the dead Remembering the dead Families of victims of drug-related extrajudicial killings offer flowers to their departed loved ones during the Holy Eucharistic Mass Action in Bagong Silang, Caloocan.

Philippines' war on drugs — Remembering the dead Calling for justice Her husband Luis and her son, Gabriel, were killed in September 2016. During their burial, she was stoic. The days after she had laid them to rest were different. "I began looking for them and could not stop crying." MA nowadays attends protest rallies calling for a stop to drug-related killings and justice for those who have died. She hides her face as she doesn't want to be identified. Author: Raffy Lerma (Manila), Ana P. Santos (Manila), Rodion Ebbighausen



In the interview clip, Locsin continues to reject the interviewer's suggestions that Hitler was a role model for his president, saying he "didn't know what he meant by it".

When pressed, he then made a statement of his own.

"I will tell you, I said the same thing, okay? I myself said the same thing before he even said it."

Read more: Duterte plans anti-communist 'death squad' in Philippines

The Philippine Department of Foreign Affairs has described the interview as "biased" and "misleading."

"The video posted by Mr. Henze on his blog is incomplete and misleading. It failed to show Mr. Henze's deliberate attempts to provoke Secretary Locsin into giving controversial remarks," it wrote.

It is not the first time Locsin has been in trouble for such comments. In a series of tweets which date back to his time as the Philippine's UN Ambassador, he said that the Nazis were "right after all" and voiced hopes for a "final solution" for his country's war on drugs.

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