Sister Patricia worked as a Catholic missionary in the Philippines, helping poor and disenfranchised workers.

She has also been a critic of the president‘s violent crackdown on the drug trade.

“The human rights abuses are just increasing and it’s a reign of terror. Of tyranny,” she said.

Sister Patricia said that she has now been blacklisted from the Philippines and is unable to return.

“Not while Duterte is president I don’t think,” she said.

Sister Patricia drew the attention of the president after visiting the island of Mindanao, which she maintains was a “fact-finding” mission.

“Working with the peasants we had heard a lot of stories about extrajudicial killings, people in jail for trumped up charges, torture ... and so we went down to document it.”

President Duterte then said he wanted her legal status as a missionary investigated.

Sister Patricia's visa was downgraded to a tourist visa and the government refused to extend or renew it.

“It seemed liked I was to get an extension but I think there was interference, a decision from someone else on the last day,” she said.

Although she fought the deportation, her passport was officially confiscated by the Philippines government on Wednesday and she was forced to leave.

Sister Patricia said the deportation happened so fast that she doesn’t yet know what she will do in Melbourne, but said she promised to continue to advocate for the people of the Philippines.