CRY FOR JUSTICE Relatives of victims in the Duterte administration鈥檚 bloody war on drugs cry for justice during a media forum on the complaint they filed against the President in the International Criminal Court on Tuesday. 鈥擥RIG C. MONTEGRANDE
Activists and families of eight victims of President Duterte鈥檚 brutal war on drugs filed a complaint on Tuesday in the International Criminal Court (ICC), a second petition accusing the Philippine leader of murder and crimes against humanity.
But the filing of the complaint鈥攆ormally referred to as communication鈥攄id not bother Malaca帽ang, which said it meant nothing.
鈥淭hat鈥檚 not a complaint. That鈥檚 a communication because it鈥檚 still to be acted upon by the ICC. Procedure is different,鈥� presidential spokesperson Harry Roque told reporters.
鈥淎nyone can file a communication. Even the Pope has a communication filed against him. So that doesn鈥檛 mean anything,鈥� Roque said.
Extrajudicial killings
The 50-page complaint calls for Mr. Duterte鈥檚 indictment for what it describes as thousands of extrajudicial killings, which include 鈥渂razen鈥� executions by police acting with impunity.
Critics of Mr. Duterte鈥檚 fierce crackdown on narcotics were being 鈥減ersecuted,鈥� it said, and cases filed by the victims鈥� families had gone nowhere.
The ICC petition follows a similar complaint filed in April 2017 by lawyer Jude Josue Sabio, into which the ICC in February started a preliminary examination.
The latest move is led by Rise Up for Life, a network of activists, priests and members of the urban poor communities that have borne the brunt of the war on drugs.
The complaint includes testimony from six relatives of eight people killed by police:
Irma J. Locasia, mother of Salvador J. Locasia Jr., killed by police in an operation on Aug. 31, 2016
Dennise B. David, father of John Jezreel T. David, killed by officers on Jan. 20, 2017
Maria C.B. Lozano, sister of Crisanto and Juan Carlos B. Lozano, both killed in a police operation on May 12, 2017
Mariel F. Sabangan, sister of Bernabe F. Sabangan, killed by police together with Arnold S. Vitales on May 15, 2017
Normita B. Lopez, mother of Djastin B. Lopez, killed by officers on May 18, 2017
Purisima B. Dacumos, wife of Danilo G. Dacumos, killed by officers on Aug. 3, 2017.
鈥楶ersonally liable鈥�
鈥淒uterte is personally liable for ordering state police to undertake mass killings,鈥� Neri Colmenares, a lawyer from the National Union of Peoples鈥� Lawyers (NUPL) that represents the group, told reporters at a media forum held at the United Churches of Christ Chapel in Quezon City, moments after he said the complaint was filed in the ICC on Tuesday morning.
Mr. Duterte says he has told the police to kill only if their lives were in danger.
In his annual address to a joint session of Congress last month, he said the war on drugs would be as 鈥渞elentless and chilling鈥� as its first two years.
The Philippine National Police says the more than 4,400 killed over that time were dealers who had all resisted arrest, and denies activists鈥� allegations of cover-ups and executions of drug users.
Roque said on Tuesday the latest ICC petition was 鈥渄oomed,鈥� and 鈥渨ould not prosper,鈥� because of the 鈥渃oncept of complementarity.鈥�
The ICC cannot act on the latest petition against Mr. Duterte unless domestic courts were 鈥渦nable or unwilling to exercise jurisdiction,鈥� he said.
The ICC prosecutor鈥檚 office did not immediately respond to a request for comment and could not be reached out of normal office hours.
Rome Statute pullout
After ICC chief prosecutor Fatou Bensouda announced the preliminary examination of the first complaint against Mr. Duterte in February, the Philippine leader unilaterally withdrew the Philippines from the Rome Statute, the ICC鈥檚 founding treaty, in March, saying the court had not followed due process and presumption of his innocence, in actions that were compounded by 鈥渂aseless, unprecedented and outrageous attacks鈥� by UN officials.
It was a stark contrast from the previous 18 months, when the former mayor of Davao City had repeatedly dared the ICC to investigate him and expressed his readiness to go on trial in The Hague.
The Supreme Court opened oral arguments later on Tuesday in a separate complaint by some opposition lawmakers challenging the legality of Mr. Duterte鈥檚 withdrawal of the Philippines from the Rome Statute, which was done without Senate approval.
Not protected
Jurist groups say Mr. Duterte is not protected from an indictment, because the ICC鈥檚 jurisdiction covers the period of membership, which in the Philippines鈥� case is from 2011 to March 2019, when the withdrawal takes effect.
In the complaint, the NUPL said the notice of withdrawal was of no moment and did not deprive the ICC of jurisdiction because the communication was filed while the Philippines was a party to the Rome Statute.
Mass murder
The ICC鈥檚 taking jurisdiction, the NUPL said, 鈥渕ay force President Duterte to reexamine, if not abandon, his distorted notion of mass murder to solve the country鈥檚 drug and crime problem.鈥�
It said ICC intervention could 鈥渟ave thousands more from slaughter.鈥�
The ICC is a court of last resort that can exercise jurisdiction if states are unable or unwilling to investigate crimes.
Senior Supt. Benigno Durana, a spokesperson for the PNP, said on Tuesday that the only order Mr. Duterte gave to police was 鈥渢o wage war on drugs and criminality within the bounds of the law.鈥� 鈥�REPORTS FROM MELVIN GASCON, CHRISTINE O. AVENDA脩O, NESTOR CORRALES