Marcos: We're done talking with ICC

The Philippine government is done communicating with the International Criminal Court (ICC) in connection with its investigation into the country's drug war, President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. said Friday.

"Basta tapos na lahat ng ating pag-uusap sa ICC (We're done talking with the ICC)," Marcos told reporters in an interview in Zamboanga Sibugay when asked for his reaction on the ICC's push for investigation on the Duterte administration's war on illegal drugs. .

"Kagaya ng sinasabi namin mula sa simula (like what I've said before), we will not cooperate with them in any way, or form," he added.

"So, we continue to defend the sovereignty of the Philippines and continue to question the jurisdiction of the ICC in their investigations here in the Philippines." 

Marcos noted that the alleged crimes were committed in the Philippines and therefore should be investigated in the country.

"Their alleged crimes are here in the Philippines, the victims are Filipino, bakit mapupunta sa The Hague? Kaya’t dito dapat (Why it's being taken up in The Hague? It should be here). That’s it. We have no appeals pending. We have no more actions being taken," Marcos said.

"So, I suppose that puts an end to our dealings with the ICC," he added.

On Tuesday, judges in the ICC's Appeals Chamber rejected the Philippine government's appeal against the probe into the alleged crimes against humanity committed under the war on

Solicitor General Menardo Guevarra had said that the Philippines could no longer file an appeal with this decision.

Under the drug war, at least 6,200 suspects were killed in police operations based on government records. Human rights groups, however, claimed the actual death toll could be from 12,000 to 30,000. 

In 2019, the Philippines, under then-President Rodrigo Duterte, withdrew from the Rome Statute, the treaty that established the ICC, after the tribunal began a preliminary probe into his administration’s drug war, followed by the launch of a formal inquiry later that year. Marcos had ruled out rejoining.

In 2021, the Supreme Court (SC) said the Philippines has the obligation to cooperate with the ICC despite its withdrawal from the Rome Statute.

Guevarra, who has met with Marcos, earlier said the Appeals Chamber will be the Philippine government’s last coordination with the international court.

Instead, Guevarra said, the government "will focus on its own investigation and prosecution of crimes in relation to the drug war."

"The ICC is free to proceed with its own investigation but it cannot expect any cooperation from the Philippine govt, as we continue to dispute its jurisdiction," Guevarra said in a statement on Friday. 

Meanwhile, several government officials have also spoken against cooperating with the ICC, including Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla, who had advised Duterte and Senator Ronald "Bato" Dela Rosa to refrain from visiting countries that could be influenced by the ICC.

Duterte and Dela Rosa, the chief of the Philippine National Police under the Duterte administration, were both mentioned in the ICC prosecutor’s report on the killings.

Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri earlier said the Senate will not give up Dela Rosa unless there's a local warrant for his arrest. Dela Rosa said he would also protect himself from arrest. —KBK, GMA Integrated News