Leila de Lima: PH should stop spending gov’t funds to block ICC probe

Leila de Lima —INQUIRER PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines — The Philippines should stop spending government funds to stonewall the ongoing investigation of the International Criminal Court (ICC) into former President Rodrigo Duterte’s bloody war on drugs, detained former Sen. Leila de Lima said on Tuesday.

De Lima said Duterte defenders in the administration of President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. should realize that the ICC will “enforce the Rome Statute so long as the Philippine government does not undertake a serious, in-depth and comprehensive investigation and prosecution of the masterminds of Duterte’s drug war killings.”

“The government should never take the cudgels for every public officer, let alone a former official, accused of committing criminal acts in the guise of defending Philippine sovereignty and jurisdiction over the criminals. Let Duterte and his co-conspirators in the drug war face the music before the ICC. Be on the side of humanity. Be on the right side of history,” De Lima said in a dispatch from Camp Crame.

She further argued that government funds should not be spent stalling the ICC probe “as this only benefits those being investigated by the ICC, and not the Filipino people.”

“The Solicitor General should just refer the international lawyer he hired to Duterte and let the former President foot the bill for his own defense, instead of spending public funds for the personal and private interest of Duterte,” De Lima added.

The ICC appeals chamber on Monday junked the plea of the Philippine government to suspend the investigation into Duterte’s violent war on drugs pending the appeal to reverse the ruling authorizing the resumption of the probe.

The latest ICC decision, according to De Lima, shows that “no amount of simulated investigations or token prosecution of small fry will fool the ICC into withdrawing its mandate insofar as taking jurisdiction over crimes against humanity committed in the Philippines is concerned.”

Following the junked appeal of the Philippines, President Marcos said the government will now disengage from any form of contact with the ICC.

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