PBBM sees ICC presence as threat to PH sovereignty
PBBM sees ICC presence as threat to PH sovereignty
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00:00 Officers and members of the International Criminal Court or ICC are free to enter the country as tourists or typical visitors.
00:08 But coming in official capacity is entirely different and will be met with indifference and no cooperation should they decide to perform investigative or probing work in the country.
00:19 A reiteration the president made for the nth time on his take on an ICC probe over the previous administration's war against illegal drugs.
00:28 Reporter Luisa Erispe expounds on in this report.
00:31 Let me say this for the 100th time. I do not recognize the jurisdiction of ICC in the Philippines.
00:42 These are the words of President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. after he was asked regarding a potential investigation by the International Criminal Court on the war on illegal drugs of the previous administration.
00:53 According to the president, the presence of the ICC is considered a threat to the sovereignty of the Philippines.
01:00 They may cross the borders of the country as ordinary but if they intend to conduct an investigation, they cannot assume to receive any kind of assistance from the government.
01:10 The Philippine government will not lift a finger to help any investigation that the ICC conducts.
01:17 However, as ordinary people, they can come and visit the Philippines but we will not help them.
01:25 President Marcos Jr. also said if the ICC tries to tap any agency of the Philippine government for help, they will not be receiving answers from any of them.
01:34 In fact, we are watching them, making sure that they do not come into contact with any agency of government.
01:48 And if they are contacting agencies of government, policemen, local government, tell them not to answer.
01:57 That is our answer. We do not recognize your jurisdiction, therefore we will not assist in any way, shape or form any of the investigations that the ICC is doing here in the Philippines.
02:09 On the other hand, Vice President Sara Duterte, one of the accused on the case filed with the ICC, released a statement and clarified that she was in part or does not have any kind of death squad under her name.
02:22 She even said she is ready to fave investigations regarding these issues. However, she will only face charges in a Filipino court.
02:30 On the part of the Department of Justice, they stand behind the President's statement to ignore the investigation of the ICC.
02:37 The DOJ also said if the ICC tries to enter the Philippines, they will be subject to procedural action and will mean several applications for permits from several government agencies in the country.
02:49 As of now, they haven't received any information yet on someone from the ICC having entered the country.
02:56 For Solicitor General Minarto Guevara, he believes the government will not lend any kind of assistance to the ICC or even law enforcement agencies regarding the investigation.
03:05 However, he reiterates that if anyone from the country has a legitimate complaint, it is better to proceed to any local court or to the nation's institutions.
03:15 Meanwhile, the Supreme Court has no comment until now on the ICC issue.
03:20 But last week, they dismissed a petition filed by a widow against 21 police officers who allegedly killed his husband and son during a by-bust operation in 2016.
03:31 On the 22-pages decision, the High Court affirmed the October 2023 decision of the ombudsman, saying only four should be convicted for the crime, while the others were suspended for joining the operations.
03:44 Luisa Erispe, Coordination.