Bayan Muna claims Marcos and Duterte admins ‘losing’ ICC case
The International Criminal Court in The Hague, The Netherlands (Photo from the ICC website)
MANILA, Philippines — Progressive group Bayan Muna on Thursday claimed that the administrations of former president Rodrigo Duterte and President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. “are losing” the case before the International Criminal Court (ICC), which is probing into the bloody campaign against illegal drugs.
Bayan Muna chair and human rights lawyer Neri Colmenares hit the government’s effort to exclude “drug war” victims from the ICC proceedings and asserted that victims’ participation in the case is guaranteed under the Rome Statute.
Colmenares’ remarks came after the ICC Court of Appeals rejected the Philippine government’s plea to block drug war victims from commenting on the case.
READ: ICC rejects PH plea to stop drug war victims from commenting on case
“[Ex-president] Duterte and the Marcos-Duterte government are losing the ICC case as shown by their belated and desperate demand for the ouster of the victims from the ICC proceedings,” he said in a statement.
READ: ICC resumes probe on PH’s drug war
“They have previously raised various issues on complementarity and even the absurd claims of sovereignty but all these were previously denied because of the Marcos-Duterte government’s refusal to genuinely investigate or prosecute [Ex-president] Duterte and his top subordinates under the Philippine legal system,” he added.
READ: Justice delayed: What the ICC probe means to drug war victims’ families (Part 1)
READ: Justice denied: What the ICC probe means to drug war victims’ families (Part 2)
According to Colmenares, who is also the chairman of the National Union of People’s Lawyers, the government can already make use of existing ICC mechanisms to protect Duterte.
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