Amnesty International [advocacy website] on Monday condemned [press release] the first two years of Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte’s [official website] administration as a “human rights calamity.”

Amnesty said that although Duterte claimed to improve the rule of law throughout the Philippines, his policies have led to an increase in violence and had a disproportionate impact on impoverished Filipinos. More specifically, Amnesty addressed Duterte’s war on drugs, something the group claims has only encouraged extrajudicial executions and has resulted in thousands of murders.

Also Monday Duterte made confrontational statements [Newsweek report] towards his critics, including UN human rights chief Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein, Pope Francis and former US president Barack Obama [official profiles] before a joint session of the Philippine Congress. Duterte then vowed to continue his controversial war on drugs and claimed that the policy has had a positive impact on the country’s economy and served to safeguard youth by rooting out harmful influences.

According to Human Rights Watch [advocacy website], Duterte’s war on drugs has claimed a total of 12,000 lives thus far.