21 hours Ago
“Please stop. You’ve got the wrong guy.” American author Nicholas Kaufmann again called on Filipinos—both supporters and critics of former President Rodrigo Duterte—to leave him out of the online conversation on the former Philippine leader’s case in the International Criminal Court (ICC).
In an interview with GMA Integrated News on Thursday, April 3, Kaufmann said it had been nearly a month since he found himself “sucked into this weird vortex of Filipino business.” Kaufmann, who had written horror and thriller books such as "100 Fathoms Below" and "Dying Is My Business," earlier took to Facebook to complain about the barrage of messages and comments, mistaking him as Nicholas Kaufman—Duterte’s lead defense counsel for his case on crimes against humanity in the ICC. READ: Kaufmann vs.
Kaufman: Author mistaken for Duterte's ICC lawyer has an appeal to Filipinos “The first couple of weeks, it was all very pro-Duterte. People thought I was his ICC lawyer, wanted to wish me good luck and give me all sorts of best wishes. This week, things changed and a more anti-Duterte crowd found me, as well.
They started sort of arguing with the pro-Duterte crowd in my comments. It blew up..
.It feels very invasive because it’s been a big distraction to me trying to get any work done or anything,” he said. 'Very Strange' Despite the clarification, Kaufmann said there were still comments from those who thought he was lying about his identity.
“Most of them say, ‘We know it’s you. You look exactly like him,’ which I don’t..
.Apparently, they feel that Nicholas Kaufman from the ICC has a side gig as a writer for horror and thrillers, which is very strange..
.I don’t understand why these folks won’t listen to reason or why they’d believe that Duterte’s lawyer would lie to them about who he is,” he said. Kaufmann also recalled another baffling comment, which read, ‘Oh, okay.
I understand that you’re not the lawyer. Can you please help bring Duterte home anyway?’ The New York-based author noted, however, that a language barrier could have played a part in causing the mix-up. Kaufmann recalled hearing about Duterte years ago but said he has only taken the time to research about the former president now that his name has been dragged into the conversation.
“I don’t know a whole lot about the Duterte situation, and as an outsider, I feel it’s not my place to pick a side. So really, I would just prefer if they left me alone,” he added. Nothing but respect Although the Kaufmann-Kaufman mess has admittedly caused him frustration, the author said it has not affected his perception of Filipinos as a whole.
“It has not affected how I see Filipinos in general. It has definitely affected how I view Duterte’s supporters in particular..
. I don’t want to alienate anyone by saying that but the anti-Duterte people who have shown up to try to explain or to try to apologize for what’s happening do seem a little more rational and sane-minded, but I have nothing but respect for the Filipino people themselves,” he said. Asked if he sees this as possible inspiration for his future works as a writer, Kaufmann said: “I think when I’m in a better place about this situation, I might look into this.
..Maybe.
Maybe, we’ll see.” But, for now, Kaufmann again pleaded for Filipinos who continue to drag him in online debates about Duterte’s ICC case to “please just kindly stop.” —VAL, GMA Integrated News.
