DUTERTE SHRUGS OFF COMPLAINT IN INT’L COURT
President Duterte on Thursday brushed off the complaint in the International Criminal Court (ICC) seeking his investigation for crimes against humanity, even as he defended himself from criticism that he was responsible for the killing of thousands of drug suspects in the country.
“Let them be. There’s nothing I can do. Nobody can stop from filing [against] you. I can even invent one and go to the fiscal’s office now and accuse you for entering into three marriages,” Mr. Duterte told reporters.
He said he himself had not read the information, sent by the lawyer for confessed Davao Death Squad hit man Edgar Matobato, who said he had carried out Mr. Duterte’s order to kill when the President was Davao City mayor.
The letter seeking the ICC’s investigation of Mr. Duterte also relied on the statements of Arturo Lascañas, who admitted to have headed the death squad.
The President said he had been given a copy of the letter, but asked why he would waste time reading it. “If I go to prison, then so be it,” he said.
Civil society delegation
Meanwhile, a 10-member delegation from civil society and faith-based groups will travel to Geneva, Switzerland, next month to present the human rights situation in the Philippines to the UN Human Rights Council.
In a press briefing on Thursday in Quezon City, the panel said they aimed to present an “alternative report” to show the realities in the country during the third cycle of the UN Universal Periodic Review (UPR).
The UPR reviews the human rights records of all 193 UN member states through reports submitted by governments, independent experts, national human rights institutions and nongovernment organizations.
For its 27th session, the period under review will include the last four years under the Aquino administration and the first few months under Mr. Duterte.
Mr. Duterte has denied that the extrajudicial killings of drug suspects were state sponsored.
Yesterday, he insisted that his order to the police was clear.
“Do I have to repeat it? I think this will be about the nth time. Go out and hunt them. Arrest them if it’s still possible. If you’re confronted with a violent reaction, thereby endangering your life, God damn, shoot him,” he said.
Asked about the extrajudicial killings that were still taking place in the country, he said these could be investigated. “There is no limit to the investigation because there is no limit to crime.”
Presidential spokesperson Ernesto Abella earlier said the request to the ICC was timed to coincide with the events for the Asean summit in order to embarrass Mr. Duterte.
Global attention
The Philippine UPR Watch said it hoped that bringing alternative reports to the international community would put additional pressure to the Duterte administration to address human rights violations under his term.
The delegation is composed of representatives from groups, like Karapatan, National Union of Peoples’ Lawyers, Gabriela, indigenous group Katribu and National Council of Churches in the Philippines.
Despite the dismissive attitude of Mr. Duterte and his allies on the comments of the international community on his war on drugs, the panel hoped that the review would put more pressure on the administration.
Jigs Clamor, Karapatan Alliance for the Advancement of People’s Rights deputy secretary general, said the panel hoped to bring the attention of several nations to the “actual realities” in the country.
“There is really an urgent need to address these violations,” he said. “To simply dismiss these actions to bring cases before the international community is a manifestation of denial of the state of the current human rights situation.”
Mr. Duterte has consistently lambasted international and local human rights groups that have expressed disapproval over the rising death toll in his drug war.