Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena once again drew condemnation from the civilized world when he publicly lauded Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte’s “war” against drugs.

Human Rights Watch, last year, stated that Duterte’s murderous “drug war” resulted in the killing of more than 12,000 drug suspects.

Duterte, according to global human rights watchdogs, has responded to increased criticism of his anti-drug campaign by impugning, harassing, and threatening critics of the government and human rights defenders.

It is against this backdrop that Sirisena, who became the laughing stock of the civilized world during the 51-day political crisis in Sri Lanka, praised the so-called drug war of his Philippino counterpart.

Sirisena made these remarks following his bilateral talks with Duterte as part of his five-day visit to the country. Sirisena also vowed to follow Duterte’s footsteps to curb the drug menace in his country.

In his speech, Sirisena said, “Excellency, the war against crime and drugs carried out by you is an example to the whole world, and personally to me. Drug menace is rampant in my country and I feel that we should follow your footsteps to control this hazard.”