By Beatrice Puente
(November 5, 2021) – President Rodrigo Duterte on Thursday accused the International Criminal Court (ICC) of violating due process if it would prosecute him about his ruthless drug war, insisting on his debunked claim that the ICC has no jurisdiction over the country.
Duterte, who’s widely lambasted for implementing his cruel campaign with no due process, said he would rather rebel if forced to face the ICC.
“Ituloy ko na lang para malabas ko galit ko: Itong mga p***** i**** ‘to, g***. Pilipino ako tapos dalhin mo ako dun? Magrebelde na lang ako. Magpatayan tayo,” said Duterte in a speech before the meeting of the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict in Palawan.
Legal luminaries have already contradicted Duterte’s claim—which they have also described as “erroneous”—that the ICC has no jurisdiction over the Philippines due to the country’s non-publication of the Rome Statute. An international treaty would already be in force following its ratification and its subsequent transmission to the concerned body, according to lawyers. But Duterte and his allies have refused to recognize it.
“Dito sa Pilipinas pa lang, you have deprived me of my constitutional right that no person shall be deprived of life, liberty, or property without due process of law. What is due process? The publication (of the treaty),” insisted Duterte.
His latest remark, however, sounds like a stark contrast to his bold pronouncements in the past. In 2016, he said he would disregard due process as he publicly announced the names of around 150 mayors, lawmakers, judges, and law enforcers allegedly linked to narcotics.
“There is no due process in my mouth. You can’t stop me, and I’m not afraid even if you say that I can end up in jail,” said Duterte.
A month before that, Duterte also said drug suspects should not ask due process from him because “he is not the court.” His remark came just two weeks after he claimed in his inauguration speech that his “adherence to due process and the rule of law is uncompromising.”
“Why should I give you due process? I cannot give you a lawyer. I cannot handle a proceeding against you,” said Duterte.
Human rights groups have criticized the iron-fisted leader for ignoring the rule of law in his bloody drug war, which has killed up to 30,000. The figure, which includes those killed by vigilante groups, is much higher than the 6,000 to 7,000 deaths recorded by the Philippine National Police.
ICC prosecutor Karim Khan will open an investigation on Duterte’s merciless policy to find accountability. Duterte wants to defy it by floating the same claims that lawyers have already refuted. His officials also claimed that the country’s justice system is “working.”
“So ngayon, manigas na kayo,” said Duterte. “Pero I would love to go to where that Hague court is without necessarily submitting to its jurisdiction. I would like to give a speech there.”
(PM)
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