The Buzz | Philippines’ Duterte will ‘die first’ before facing International court

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte would rather “die first” before facing an international tribunal, his spokesman said yesterday, the day after the International Criminal Court announced it would investigate allegations of crimes against humanity during his bloody war on drugs.
Duterte’s spokesman, Harry Roque, said the president was unfazed when he’d informed him late Wednesday of the court’s decision.
“The president didn’t have any reaction, because from the get go, he has said that he’ll die first before he faces any international courts,” Roque told reporters.
“If there are any complaints, they should file it here in the Philippines.”
The court on Wednesday said it had authorized an investigation requested by former prosecutor Fatou Bensouda into Duterte’s anti-drugs campaign, saying it could not “be seen as a legitimate law enforcement operation.”
More than 6,000 mostly poor drug suspects have been killed during the campaign, according to the government, but human rights groups say the death toll is considerably higher and should include many unsolved killings by motorcycle-riding gunmen who may have been deployed by police.