Back to the ICC?

What can the Marcos administration gain from bringing the country back to the fold of the International Criminal Court?

For one, it’s a good way of burnishing the Marcos brand and remaking the global image associated with Ferdinand Marcos as a gross violator of human rights. Ferdinand Junior has nothing to fear; the ICC is not about to investigate him or his relatives for Rome Statute crimes.

 For another, it may free up state resources and manpower that are currently undertaking the difficult task of identifying which of over 6,000 drug deaths officially reported by the police are cases of extrajudicial killings and which ones resulted from legitimate law enforcement operations.

As Solicitor General Menardo Guevarra has lamented, probers are having a tough time finding witnesses and material evidence to establish EJK cases. Last year, Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla urged police officers involved in the killings to come out and testify, promising them protection under the Marcos administration. There are no takers so far.

Guevarra told “The Chiefs” on OneNews that separating the legit kills from the extrajudicial is needed to build a case for possible murder as a crime against humanity – the Rome Statute offense that the ICC is pursuing against Rodrigo Duterte when he was mayor and then president.

The country has a law covering crimes against humanity: Republic Act 9851, the Philippine Act on Crimes Against International Humanitarian Law, Genocide, and Other Crimes Against Humanity.

Harry Roque, Duterte’s lawyer in the first criminal case filed against him after his presidency, says those pushing for an ICC probe can instead file a case in the Philippines for violation of RA 9851. Incidentally, Harry says the criminal case against Duterte is proof that the country’s justice system is working.

Duterte has said he is willing to face any complaint filed against him in connection with his brutal campaign against illegal drugs – but only in the Philippines.

What will he do if the Marcos administration decides to make the country rejoin the ICC?

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From the unequivocal statement that “we’re done talking with the ICC,” President Marcos is now