NUPL, Rise Up to Marcos: Accept ICC ad hoc jurisdiction

MANILA, Philippines — President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. can accept the ad hoc jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court (ICC) for the drug war investigation, a group of human rights advocates and lawyers said on Wednesday.

In a joint statement, National Union of Peoples' Lawyers (NUPL) and Rise Up for Life and for Rights (Rise Up) urged President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to consider embracing the ICC’s conditional jurisdiction for the drug war investigation, highlighting that Senate concurrence is not needed for such a decision, despite the Philippines not being an ICC member.

“We appeal to the president to seriously consider engaging again with the court, given recent support from the legislative for cooperation with the ongoing investigation. Five resolutions pending in both Houses of Congress reflect the people's enduring search for truth and justice,” the groups said.

The statement came days after five resolutions from the legislative department had been filed at the House of Representatives and the Senate urging the administration’s cooperation with the ICC probe. 

In 2019, the Philippines exited the Rome Statute following ICC former prosecutor Fatou Bensouda's commencement of a preliminary investigation into alleged human rights abuses during the anti-drug campaign of former President Rodrigo Duterte. Human Rights Watch approximates that this initiative led to estimated 30,000 fatalities. .

Under Article 12 of the Rome Statute, a non-member state of the ICC can accept the jurisdiction of the ICC in relation to crimes committed under Article 5 of the Rome Statute.

The following crimes according to Article 5 are:

For instance, Ukraine, which is not a member of the ICC, invoked Article 12 over alleged crimes committed in violation of the Rome Statute in the middle of the Russian-Ukraine conflict.

Meanwhile, the groups also called on Vice President Sara Duterte, who appealed to the Department of Justice not to cooperate with the ICC, to set aside personal interest and weigh on “public interest” to an “effective legal system that leads to real accountability.”

“Politics aside, the victims of the ‘war on drugs’ deserve to know once and for all, why and how their