Speaking last week during a visit to
Tokyo, Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte told a crowd that he
“used to be gay” but “cured” himself.
Known for making colorful statements,
Duterte accused his political opponent Senator Antonio Trillanes IV
of being gay. Trillanes is a vocal critic of Duterte.
Duterte said that while married to his
ex-wife Elizabeth Zimmerman, he sensed he was also “a bit gay”
but was “cured” after meeting his current partner Honeylet
Avancena.
“I became a man again! So beautiful
women cured me,” Duterte
is quoted as saying by CNN. “I hated handsome men afterwards. I
now prefer beautiful women.”
In 2017, Duterte said that he was
against same-sex marriage, but later that year, while attending an
LGBT conference in Davao City, Philippines, he said that under his
administration the rights of the LGBT community would be protected.
“There will be no oppression and we
will recognize your importance in society,” he said.