Former presidential spokesperson Harry Roque issued the following statement on Sunday (Nov. 21) regarding the International Criminal Court’s (ICC) move to defer their preliminary investigation into the country’s drug war:
“The ICC prosecutors’ decision to defer the ongoing preliminary investigation on the Philippine drug war highlights the importance of the principle of complementarity,” Roque, a lawyer, said.
“Under this principle, the ICC will only exercise jurisdiction if local justice institutions, such as the prosecutors and the Courts, are unable and unwilling to exercise its jurisdiction.
“The Court was never intended to be a court of first instance, but only as a court of last resort.
“This order is a recognition that the Philippine institutions are working and that the ICC will not exercise original jurisdiction precisely because sovereignty and jurisdiction provides that it is Philippine authorities that must investigate, punish, and prosecute the alleged instances of illegal killings in connection with the drug war.
“The Philippine response to the ICC prosecutors’ request for information on investigation and prosecution does not deviate from the President’s position that the ICC has no jurisdiction. This was in fact also alleged by Philippine authorities. This is because President Duterte is not a respondent in any preliminary investigation as the on-going ICC investigation is focused on the drug war.” (Office of Atty. Roque) – jlo
