Philippine president-elect promises 'a medal' to anyone who shoots a drug dealer

Rodrigo Duterte, the new and controversial leader of the Philippines, has called for vigilante justice to deal with the country’s rampant drug trade. In a nationally televised address, Mr Duterte invited any member of the public who encounters a drug dealer to “call us, the police, or do it yourself if you have the gun – you have my support.” If the suspect resists, he went on, “You can kill him. Shoot him and I’ll give you a medal.”

Speaking on Saturday to a vast crowd in Davao, the southern city where he spent two decades as mayor, Mr Duterte reportedly said he would offer a bounty of five million pesos (£74,000) for a drug lord, “if he is dead. If he is alive, only 4.999 million.” According to the Associated Press, he also claimed drug addicts were incapable of rehabilitation, warning: “If you are involved in drugs, I will kill you. You son of a whore, I will really kill you.”

Known by his nickname, "The Punisher", the tough-talking Mr Duterte was elected president of the Philippines in May after a campaign in which he vowed to tackle the country’s crime and corruption problems. He is due to be sworn in on 30 June. He made international headlines a week ago after a reporter was shot dead in the capital, Manila, part of a spate of journalist deaths. Mr Duterte was not exactly sympathetic. “Just because you’re a journalist you are not exempted from assassination, if you’re a son of a bitch,” he said.