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Malacañang described as “legally erroneous” the assertion of the prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) that there is a reasonable basis to believe that crimes against humanity were committed during the Duterte administration’s war on drugs.
Palace spokesman Harry Roque Jr. said Malacañang disagrees with the assertions of the ICC’s chief prosecutor, Fatou Bensouda.
Bensouda credited the findings that the Philippine authorities committed murders, torture and physical injuries between July 1, 2016 and March 16, 2019.
“Obviously, we do not agree with her. It is legally wrong because we have the minimum required severity. Not all crimes should be tried at the ICC, ”said Roque.
He expressed confidence that the ICC will not initiate a preliminary investigation against Duterte.
Roque also emphasized that the ICC does not have jurisdiction over the president.
Duterte’s allies repeatedly claim that the ICC lost jurisdiction over the Philippines after the country withdrew from court in March 2019.
Bensouda said that the situation in the Philippines has been under preliminary examination since February 8, 2018.
“The Office is convinced that the information available provides a reasonable basis to believe that the crimes against humanity of murder (article 7 (1) (a)), torture (article 7 (1) (f)) and serious physical injury and mental harm since other inhumane acts (article 7 (1) (k)) were committed in the territory of the Philippines between at least July 1, 2016 and March 16, 2019, in connection with the WoD campaign (war against drugs) launched across the country, ”Bensouda said.
The report indicated that thousands of people were killed for their alleged involvement in the use or sale of illegal drugs, due to an identity mistake, or “inadvertently when the perpetrators opened fire on their apparent targets.”
Bensouda also took note of the killings allegedly perpetrated by “vigilantes” or “unknown gunmen”, which may have led authorities to suggest that the killings are not related to the government’s crackdown on illegal drugs.
There have also been reports that some people were “subjected to severe mistreatment and abuse” before being killed by the authorities or by unidentified gunmen, Bensouda said.
“It has also been alleged that in various events, family members [such as spouses, parents or children] of the victims were witnesses to the murders, which kept the mental suffering, ”he said.
Bensouda emphasized that despite the withdrawal of the Philippines from the Rome Statute that formed the ICC in 2011, the ICC still retains its jurisdiction over the country during the period when it was still a state party to the statute as of November 1, 2011. until March 16. , 2019. |
Bensouda’s report also included Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra’s announcement last June that an inter-agency panel had been formed to re-investigate deaths while conducting drug war operations.
“The Office has been and will continue to closely monitor developments related to this body,” he said of the Philippine interagency panel.
Bayan Muna’s party list welcomed the ICC report and said that it had always supported the families of extrajudicial victims in their demand for justice.
Bayan Muna President and former Representative Neri Colmenares, who is also legal advisor to the RISE UP ICC complaint, said: “We are pleased that the ICC Prosecutor has found credibility for these complaints and the evidence we have presented.” .
“The Duterte administration may deny to the heights that they are blatantly violating human rights, but the international community is also watching closely and we hope that justice will soon be served,” Colmenares said.
The deputy leader of the minority and representative of Bayan Muna, Carlos Isagani Zárate, also welcomed the report of the ICC Prosecutor.
“With the recent escalation of red labels, arrests and extrajudicial killings of critics of the administration and the political opposition, we are relieved that the ICC has expressed concern on the issue. The violators of human rights have been warned. Nothing is forever; not even impunity, ”said Zárate.
With DIVINA NOVA JOY DELA CRUZ AND DEMPSEY REYES
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