Trudeau says he raised human rights issues with Duterte after Trump didn’t

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau reportedly raised the issue of human rights abuses with Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte after President Trump avoided bringing up the touchy topic during his meeting with Duterte over the weekend.

Trudeau said he expressed his concerns about extrajudicial killings as well as other alleged wrongdoing related to Duterte’s aggressive crackdown on illegal drugs, Bloomberg News reported Tuesday.

“I also mentioned human rights, the rule of law and specifically extrajudicial killings as being an issue that Canada is concerned with,” Trudeau told reporters after having a closed-door meeting with Duterte. 

{mosads}“The president was receptive to my comments and it was throughout a very cordial and positive exchange,” he added. 

Duterte, who is waging a crackdown on drugs in the country, has come under fire for allegations of human rights abuses.

Trump met with Duterte on Sunday during his first official visit to the country, the last stop on his five-nation tour of Asia.

The White House said the two leaders “briefly” talked about human rights as it related to the drug crackdown, but Duterte’s spokesman denied that the issue was discussed. 

Lawmakers like Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) blasted Trump for failing to confront the Philippine leader on the subject.

“And human rights obviously not a priority in @POTUS’s meeting with Duterte — again, sad,” McCain tweeted Monday.

Trump previously praised the Philippine leader for his drug campaign, saying in May that Duterte is doing an “unbelievable job on the drug problem.”