Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has once again landed a spot on the cover of Time magazine, but this time, it’s with his “idol,” Russian President Vladimir Putin, along with some other “strongmen.”
Duterte, who has expressed his admiration for the Russian leader, must be elated.
The cover is for the magazine’s May 14 international edition and is accompanied with a story titled The ‘Strongmen Era’ Is Here. Here’s What It Means for You about the trend of tough-talking populists leading countries all over the world.
On the cover with Duterte and Putin are Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, who has been accused of promoting “illiberal democracy” and tapping into fears about Muslim migrants, and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who has gone after secular elites.
Not on the cover but duly mentioned in the feature story are Duterte’s other BFFs, Chinese President Xi Jinping and United States President Donald Trump.
The story credits Duterte’s election victory to a desire among Filipinos to end the country’s rising crime rates, describing him as “a former mayor who talked more like a Mob boss than a President” who won on “his promises to wipe out the drug trade with his own brand of justice”.
This isn’t the first time Duterte was featured on Time‘s cover. He also appeared on the front of an issue of their Asia edition, released after the 2016 elections, in which he was labeled “The Punisher.”
Looks like not much has changed since then.
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