Phil now open to ICC probe on ‘war on drugs’

More than a whiff of fresh air: The Marcos administration now says it's willing to sit down with the [International Criminal Court (ICC) to discuss its criminal investigation on the latter’s areas of cooperation on the former president Duterte’s ‘war on drugs.’ The time goes back soon after he was sworn in last June 30.

- SATUR C. OCAMPO

More than a whiff of fresh air. The Marcos Jr. administration now says it’s willing to sit down with the International Criminal Court (ICC) to discuss “certain areas” of cooperation on the latter’s investigation, started in 2018, on former president Duterte’s “war on drugs.” The timeline goes back to the time he was Davao City mayor.

The discussions would be held soon “in a very well-defined manner, in the spirit of comity,” Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin disclosed in an interview with Reuters. The Philippine STAR headlined the news yesterday.

One may recall that early in his Malacañang stint, Ferdinand Marcos Jr. clearly asserted that his administration had no legal duty to comply with any obligation to the ICC or to support its proceedings. He banked on the ground that, upon Duterte’s officially withdrawing the country’s membership from the court – which took effect in March 2019 – the Philippines had yielded its treaty obligations under the Rome Statute.

Marcos Jr. was even quoted then as saying the ICC was a threat to the country’s sovereignty. Consequently, his administration would not help, in whatever manner, in the latter’s probe of drug killings and related crimes under ICC jurisdiction that could be deemed as crimes against humanity.

That position, of course, raised strong protests. Now, there seems to be a change in the wind. “Some people are trying to bridge the divide to bring us together, so we can sit at one table,” Remulla reportedly said. “There are certain areas we can cooperate,” he added, though emphasizing that “lines have to be drawn properly.”