ICC urged: Start Rody trial now

Victims of Rodrigo Duterte's war on drugs have called for the former president's immediate trial on charges of crimes against humanity before the International Criminal Court (ICC).

- By JOSE RODEL CLAPANO

"At last, the Pre-Trial Chamber has decided that the ICC has jurisdiction in the pending case against president Rodrigo Duterte for crime against humanity. Let the trial begin," lawyer Neri Colmenares, co-counsel for the families of victims of extrajudicial killings, said in a statement.

Colmenares also called for the immediate issuance of a warrant of arrest for Sen. Ronald dela Rosa, the chief of police when Duterte was mayor of Davao City and later president.

"The next step is the issuance of arrest warrants for Duterte subordinates like Ronald dela Rosa. We are glad that the ICC has finally laid to rest this oft repeated issue of jurisdiction. The fundamental principle of the Rome Statute of the ICC is that criminals who committed crimes at the time that his country is a member of the ICC must be made accountable," Colmenares said.