Visayan people

Philippine Vice President Sara Duterte said on Nov. 23 she has contracted an assassin to kill the president, his wife and the House of Representatives speaker if she herself is killed, in a brazen public threat that she warned was not a joke.

Former Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte strongly defended his deadly drug war as he testified on Monday at a senate probe of the crackdown.

Police said the campaign left more than 6,000 people dead, but rights groups estimate tens of thousands of mostly poor men were killed by officers and vigilantes, often without proof they were linked to drugs.

In doing so, he joined a group of security officials who have vowed to defend the nation following secessionist threats by former President Rodrigo Duterte.

Turkish-British actress Susku Ekim Kaya, who has been awarded by the international film festivals in New York and Italy for the quarantine short film she directed and played in London, will be honored at the NY Cat Film Festival in New York and the Vesuvius International Film Festival in Italy for her short film, titled "Will you be my quarantine?"

A 6.8-magnitude earthquake was registered in the Philippines, Reuters reported citing the US Geological Survey.

The tremor was 37 kilometres west of Davao City, at a depth of 22 kilometres. So far, there are no reports of casualties and devastation, nor of a tsunami threat.

This is the third earthquake in the area since October 16.

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte drew outrage Sunday after saying he "touched" his maid when he was a teenager, with women's rights groups accusing him of attempted rape and encouraging sexual abuse.

A Philippine mayor accused of involvement in narcotics trafficking survived an ambush on May 13, police said, four months after President Rodrigo Duterte publicly threatened to kill him.

The Philippines has barred entry to an EU party official critical of President Rodrigo Duterte's brutal drugs crackdown, in a move denounced by critics yesterday as a gag on dissent.

President Rodrigo Duterte has launched a foul-mouthed attack on the U.N. human rights chief, calling him "empty-headed" in a row over international criticism of the Philippine leader's deadly drug war.

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has asked other countries to abandon the International Criminal Court because it is “rude.” Duterte is
facing a possible complaint before the world tribunal for the thousands of killings of drug suspects during his time in office.