[av_one_full first min_height=” vertical_alignment=” space=” custom_margin=” margin=’0px’ padding=’0px’ border=” border_color=” radius=’0px’ background_color=” src=” background_position=’top left’ background_repeat=’no-repeat’ animation=”]
[av_heading heading=’Du30 spokesman sees ‘end’ to ICC’ tag=’h3′ style=’blockquote modern-quote’ size=’30’ subheading_active=’subheading_below’ subheading_size=’18’ padding=’10’ color=” custom_font=” av-medium-font-size-title=” av-small-font-size-title=” av-mini-font-size-title=” av-medium-font-size=” av-small-font-size=” av-mini-font-size=” admin_preview_bg=”]
BY ADRIAN STEWART CO
[/av_heading]
[av_textblock size=” font_color=” color=” av-medium-font-size=” av-small-font-size=” av-mini-font-size=” admin_preview_bg=”]
Friday, March 16, 2018
[/av_textblock]
[av_textblock size=’18’ font_color=” color=” av-medium-font-size=” av-small-font-size=” av-mini-font-size=” admin_preview_bg=”]
MANILA – Rodrigo Duterte’s spokesman was seeing an “end” to the International Criminal Court after the President declared that the Philippines was pulling out from the treaty that created the tribunal.
Duterte announced in a written statement released on Wednesday that the country was withdrawing from the Rome Statute “effective immediately” due to the ICC’s “propensity for failing to give due respect to the State Parties of the Rome Statute” and the “clear bias on the part of the United Nations against the Philippines.”
This move might prompt other nations to withdraw membership in the ICC, Presidential Spokesman Harry Roque told a cable news channel in an interview yesterday.
“The Philippine withdrawal, I am sure, will start an avalanche of other states leaving the court because no one will tolerate an unaccountable prosecutor conducting preliminary examination in brazen violation of the principle of complementarity,” Roque said.
“Secondly, no other Asians would join the ICC now. Only the Philippines has taken the role of advocating that other countries in the region should become a member. This is the beginning of the end of the court,” he said.
Duterte’s announcement came in light of the preliminary examination that an ICC prosecutor started to determine jurisdiction over allegations of crimes against humanity in the country amid the government crackdown on illegal drugs.
Roque argued that, under the principle of complementarity, the ICC may investigate allegations of genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes only if domestic courts were unable or unwilling to do so.
The Rome Statute was created to “put an end to impunity for the perpetrators of these crimes and thus to contribute to the prevention of such crimes,” and established the ICC the same day the treaty was entered into force on July 1, 2002.
The Philippines cannot withdraw from the Rome Statute immediately. Withdrawal may take effect one year after a formal letter of intent is received by the United Nations secretary-general.
Roque, a former cochairperson of the Philippine Coalition for the International Criminal Court, was one of those who pushed for the Philippine government’s ratification of the Rome Statute.
In a blog post on Aug. 25, 2011, Roque praised the Senate and then President Benigno Aquino III for the ratification of the Rome Statute, “for finally granting the Filipino people an effective remedy to impunity.”
There he also explained that the ICC “will prosecute individuals without regard to sovereign immunity as a defense” and “individuals who are probably guilty of the foregoing crime on the basis of command responsibility.”
Now Roque works for Duterte, who has been accused of impunity before the ICC.
Burundi, Gambia and South Africa have attempted to withdraw from the ICC. Gambia and South Africa retracted their plan but Burundi went through with the proceedings and left the court on Oct. 27 last year./PN
[/av_textblock]
[/av_one_full]
