Office of the Solicitor General PR
Solicitor General Jose C. Calida, the government’s top lawyer, today said that the Philippines’ withdrawal from the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (ICC) does not have an adverse effect on the country’s justice system.
“The Philippine justice system functions independently with or without membership in the ICC. Hence, the withdrawal of the Philippines from the Rome Statute has no effect in our justice system,” Calida said.
According to Calida, the investigation and prosecution of drug-related deaths, incidents, and/or offenses are ongoing in the country. Citing official government statistics, he said that as of 2018, 49,034 drug-related cases have been filed in court, and 75,327 such cases were pending in public prosecutor’s offices. There are also cases pending before the Supreme Court regarding alleged violations committed in connection with the government’s campaign against illegal drugs.
“All these facts show that the government is not unwilling or unable to prosecute these crimes, despite what administration critics say,” Calida said. “Our government institutions continue to function, investigate, and prosecute these cases despite membership or non-membership in the ICC.”
Calida also said that Philippine laws sufficiently provide remedies and protect the fundamental rights of Filipinos. According to him, Republic Act No. 9851, or the “Philippine Act on Crimes Against International Humanitarian Law, Genocide, and Other Crimes Against Humanity,” thoroughly encapsulates the purpose and intent of the Rome Statute. “All the relevant protections and guarantees under the Rome Statute are provided to the Filipino people through our domestic law,” Calida said.
“The Philippines cannot be coerced to submit to the jurisdiction of the ICC. We have validly withdrawn from the Rome Statute pursuant to Article 127 thereof. As a sovereign state, it is our prerogative to be a party to the Rome Statute or not,” the solicitor general explained.
Calida also stressed that the Philippine withdrawal from the Rome Statute will not affect foreign aid to the country. Foreign aid sometimes comes with conditionalities regarding human rights protections.
“The Rome Statute is not the only instrument that provides remedies for the protection of human rights. Philippine laws sufficiently afford protection. The Philippines remain a party to other human rights treaties, such as the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR),” he said.
The Solicitor General also said that before the Philippines’ withdrawal, only two other countries from Southeast Asia, Cambodia and Timor-Leste, ratified the Rome Statute. The fact that other ASEAN countries were not parties to the Rome Statute did not affect their foreign aid.
