Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, November 24) — President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said his administration is studying whether the country should rejoin the International Criminal Court (ICC), but insists that the body has “no jurisdiction” to probe the drug war killings.
\”There’s also a question should we return under the fold of the ICC. That is under study. We’ll just keep looking at it and see what our options are,\” the chief executive told reporters on Friday.
This comes after lawmakers filed House resolutions calling on the government to cooperate with the ICC investigation into the Duterte administration’s bloody war on drugs.
Three resolutions have been filed so far by Reps. France Castro, Arlene Brosas, Raoul Daniel Manuel, Bienvenido Abante Jr., Ramon Rodrigo Gutierrez, and Edcel Lagman.
Senator Risa Hontiveros told CNN Philippines she is considering filing a similar resolution in the Senate that calls for the cooperation of the Marcos administration with the ICC.
The Philippine Coalition for the International Criminal Court (PCICC) welcomed Marcos’ statement, emphasizing that a membership in the tribunal “manifests the country’s commitment to accountability and justice.”
Being a member of the ICC manifests our country’s commitment to accountability and justice for the most serious crimes of international concern,” it said in a statement.
“While the government is reconsidering membership to the ICC, we urge it to cooperate with the current investigation. The ICC is a complimentary mechanism,” the PCICC added.
Marcos, however, said there are still issues in terms of jurisdiction and sovereignty.
\”If we can solve those problems then it will be something else. Medyo fundamental ang kwestyon na ganun (Those are fundamental). If you talk about the jurisdiction of ICC, especially since we have withdrawn from the Rome Statute a few years back, that brings into question if that is possible,\” he said.
READ: EXPLAINER: ICC and its authority
Marcos said it is \”not right\” that foreigners will dictate who Philippine authorities should investigate and arrest.
“Hindi naman siguro tama yun. Dapat Pilipino ang gumagawa niyan. May PNP (Philippine National Police), NBI (National Bureau of Investigation), at DOJ (Department of Justice) tayo. Kaya nila ang trabahong yan. That is where the conflict is,” he said.
[Translation: That’s not right. Filipinos should do that. We have PNP, NBI, and DOJ. They can do that job. That is where the conflict is.]
Meanwhile, Senator Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa said he is not surprised with Marcos’ statement as the chief executive is still against a probe led by foreigners.
The president is the chief architect of foreign policies. It is under his discretion to do that. He can do that,” he said.Kung study nga lang (If it’s only studying), it does not cause alarm to us,” Dela Rosa added.Dela Rosa, who is among the accused in the ICC drug war probe, said he is willing to face any local court but maintains that he is not willing to cooperate with a foreign investigation.
READ: Senate ready to protect Dela Rosa amid ICC drug war probe
However, the police chief-turned-senator added that he is preparing for any possible development on the drug war probe.
“I feel that I should be ready. I should be ready for any eventuality. Because the political situation in the Philippines is ah, very, very fluid. So I have to be ready,” he said.
Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla said he will “seek out” the executive branch’s position on the measures filed at the House of Representatives.
In a briefing on Friday, Remulla said the country is still “very far” from entertaining the possibility of returning to the ICC, insisting that there are a lot of aspects that need to be studied.
“Hindi porket sinabi ng mga kongresista na dapat tayong kumilos sa isang direksyon ay nangangahulugan na gagawin natin ‘yan,” Remulla said, referring to the House resolutions.
[Translation: Just because congressmen said the country should move in one direction does not mean we have to follow.]Senator Francis Tolentino said the Philippines cannot simply return to the ICC since the country was the one that withdrew from the international body.
“For us to rejoin, it would entail an accession to the treaty again. Siguro ma-aaral (Maybe they can study) if that would require a concurrence coming from the Senate,” he said.
The senator also agreed with the president on his stance of establishing jurisdiction and sovereignty.
The Philippines withdrawal from ICC took effect in March 2019, a year after a case was filed against then-President Rodrigo Duterte for his administration’s drug war.
In January, ICC’s pre-trial chamber authorized the resumption of investigation into the controversial drug war in the Philippines under prosecutor Karim Khan.
The probe was put on hold following a deferral request from the Philippine government.
During Duterte’s term, state monitoring platform RealNumbersPH showed that over 6,000 people died in anti-illegal drug operations but Khan estimates that deaths reached up to as many as 30,000 civilians.
