Philippine Supreme Court junks bid to block transfer of senator to ICC
THE PHILIPPINE Supreme Court on Wednesday rejected a bid by Senator Ronald “Bato” M. dela Rosa to stop his arrest and transfer to the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague.
Voting 9-5 with one abstention, the high court decided not to issue a restraining order, while noting that other issues in the senator’s petition had yet to be addressed.
Mr. dela Rosa, whose whereabouts are unknown, is wanted for alleged crimes against humanity over his role in a bloody “war on drugs” during former President Rodrigo R. Duterte’s 2016-2022 presidency. He has denied involvement in illegal killings.
Philippine authorities last week confirmed they were seeking to arrest the former police chief and top enforcer of the crackdown, who had argued in a petition to the court that law enforcement had no authority to execute an arrest warrant issued by a foreign court.
The court’s decision is the latest turn in a dramatic story that has gripped the Philippines since early last week and paves the way for his arrest.
Mr. dela Rosa emerged from six months of hiding last week and took refuge at the Senate for several days, before slipping away in the early hours of May 14, after a night of chaos and gunfire following his appeal for help and claims that his arrest was imminent.
As Mr. Duterte’s national police chief, he was the top enforcer of a bloody crackdown during which thousands of alleged drug dealers were shot dead in police operations.
At the peak of the campaign, murders of drug users spiked dramatically, with police blaming those killings on vigilantes and turf wars.
Human rights groups say an accurate death toll might never be known and accuse police of systematic murders and cover-ups, which they deny, insisting those killed were armed and had resisted arrest.
Mr. Duterte is in detention in The Hague after his arrest last year and will go on trial for crimes against humanity. He maintains his innocence.
Mr. dela Rosa’s lawyers in a statement said they would seek a reconsideration and continue pursuing all available legal remedies.
“Today’s resolution is not a judgment on the merits,” they said. “It is not a final ruling on the legality of enforcing an ICC process within Philippine territory. It is not a final ruling on the constitutional limits of executive cooperation with a foreign tribunal.”
Justice Secretary Fredderick A. Vida on Friday said authorities would “definitely” seek to arrest Mr. dela Rosa and execute the ICC warrant.
Malacañang said the International Criminal Court’s arrest warrant against Mr. dela Rosa could now be enforced “Since there is no temporary restraining order, we are saying that the warrant of arrest is valid,” Palace Press Officer Clarissa A. Castro told reporters in Filipino on Wednesday, citing the position of the Office of the Solicitor General (OSG).
She said President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. intends to follow the law in implementing the warrant.
“What the President can do is start with the law and abide by the rule of law,” Ms. Castro said.
She declined to comment on the timing or operational details of any arrest, referring questions to the Department of Justice.
Solicitor General Darlene Marie B. Berberabe earlier argued before the Supreme Court that the ICC warrant against Mr. dela Rosa does not require validation by Philippine courts to be enforceable.
“The ICC warrant against Senator dela Rosa does not require validation by a domestic court to be enforceable,” the OSG said in its filing.
The Philippines withdrew from the Rome Statute in 2019, an argument both Mr. Duterte and Mr. dela Rosa have used in challenging the ICC’s jurisdiction over the drug war cases. — Chloe Mari A. Hufana with Reuters
