De Lima pursues 'mass murderer' Duterte

MANILA, Philippines — Freed after nearly seven years behind bars, Philippine human rights campaigner Leila de Lima told AFP on Friday she prays for her safety as she seeks to bring "mass murderer" Rodrigo Duterte to justice.

De Lima, one of the most vocal and powerful critics of the former president and his deadly drug war that sparked an international investigation into possible crimes against humanity, was released on bail less than two weeks ago.

While "extremely happy" to be free, the former senator, justice minister and human rights commissioner said she was taking precautions in case Duterte went after her.

"His instigation of thousands of killings makes him a mass murderer so he's very much capable of doing harm to somebody who he thinks is his enemy," de Lima said in a face-to-face interview conducted at AFP's office in Manila for security reasons.

"I like to think that I'm his top enemy. His anger is such that he has not forgotten me or forgiven me." 

Before her arrest on February 24, 2017, de Lima had spent a decade investigating "death squad" killings allegedly orchestrated by Duterte during his time as Davao City mayor and in the early days of his presidency.

De Lima, 64, paid a heavy price for her unflinching pursuit of justice, as Duterte and his allies sought to silence her.

She was forced from the Senate and into a jail cell on three drug trafficking charges that she and human rights groups have described as bogus. Two of the charges have been dismissed. 

Now that she's out, de Lima said her lawyers planned to file lawsuits against Duterte and others with the "appropriate agencies", such as the Department of Justice or the Office of the Ombudsman.

"He was -- is -- my chief oppressor," de Lima said.

"I want him to be held accountable for ordering my prosecution."  

Before her release on November 13, De Lima was held at the national police headquarters in Manila in a compound reserved for high-profile prisoners, rather than in one of the country's overcrowded prisons.

To maintain her physical and mental strength, de Lima said she exercised, prayed, read books and stayed up to date with the news so she could "withstand any threat and to emerge