News Roundup 08 September 2022
Sep 08, 2022 • 5 min Read
Philippines questions ICC jurisdiction, says alleged EJKs ‘not crimes vs humanity’ | PHILSTAR.COM –The Philippines is asking the Intertnational Criminal Court’s (ICC) pre-trial chamber (PTC) to deny the request of the Office of the Prosecutor to resume its investigation into alleged extrajudicial killings in the Philippines, including under the “war on drugs.” The Office of the Solicitor General on Thursday said that it transmitted the country’s observations on the alleged crimes against humanity through the Philippine Embassy at The Hague in Netherlands, as required by the ICC PTC. “The Philippine government explained to the ICC PTC the extent of the drug problem in the Philippines and the process of investigating and prosecuting drug-related offenses under the Philippine legal and judicial system,” the OSG said. It also maintained that the “ICC has no jurisdiction over the situation in the Philippines” and argued that the incidents that happened between July 1, 2016 to March 16, 2019 and November 1, 2011 to June 30, 2016 “do not constitute [as] ‘crimes against humanity.’’ The OSG said that the situation in the Philippines is inadmissble under Article 17 of the Rome Statute, which, among others — provide that states with jurisdiction already investigating or prosecuting the case may be considered inadmissible. However, the same article also provides an exception if the state “is unwilling or unable genuinely to carry out the investigation or prosecution.” “The Philippine government emphasized that the complaints filed before the ICC are already being investigated and prosecuted by the proper agencies and that the state is neither unwilling nor unable to carry out these domestic proceedings,” the OSG said. A report on the progress of these investigations was included in the submission.” The Philippines also emphasized that state-level investigative proceedings “should take precedence” and said that the ICC prosecutor’s investigation would no longer be needed. Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla previously said that the Philippines will respond to the ICC out of courtesy and “not complying in any demand.” The government has been adamant in keeping international investigators from visiting the country, maintaining that it is doing its own investigations into the alleged crimes. However, even with the National Bureau of Investigation, ICC Prosecutor Kharim Khan previously said that the investigations are “still far far short of seeking accountability for the thousands of killings attributable to police (and other groups) in the [‘war on drugs’] context.” The government’s tally as of February this year showed 6,235 individuals died due to the anti-drug operations of former President Rodrigo Duterte, but human rights groups estimate the number of people killed is at around 30,000.
‘Bloody Sunday’: Raps filed, but are 30 accused cops in jail? | INQUIRER.NET – The Department of Justice (DOJ) assured lawmakers on Wednesday that murder complaints had been filed against 30 police officers implicated in the March 2021 “Bloody Sunday” massacre, but it has yet to ascertain the status of the respondents. Act Teachers Party-list Rep. France Castro raised the issue during the hearing of the House Committee on Appropriations on the proposed 2023 DOJ budget. Castro asked for an update on the probe of the incident, which is being conducted by the AO 35 Committee, which was created under Administrative Order No. 35, issued in 2012 by then-President Benigno Aquino III. The inter-agency committee is tasked with investigating extralegal killings, enforced disappearances, torture, and other rights violations. It was Justice Undersecretary Brigido Dulay who gave Castro an update. Speaking in a mix of Filipino and English, he said: “As per the report of the AO 35 team, cases of murder have been filed at the Office of the Prosecutor against 30 PNP officers and personnel. So there’s already a case. The preliminary investigation is ongoing. And we commit, Madame Chair, we will submit to the committee the present status of all of those cases.” Castro asked if the accused officers had been jailed. Dulay said that they were only under preliminary investigation for the moment. But he neither confirmed nor denied if the officers were in jail. “This is just observation,” Castro said. “When its uniformed personnel involved, the PI [preliminary investigation] takes a long time. But when it’s trumped-up cases, [suspects] are jailed immediately. So my second question, Mr. Secretary, is: Can you say that we have a healthy justice system?” It was Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla who answered, saying that the justice system was healthy despite lacking key resources such as courts, prosecutors, and a sufficient budget. Remulla mentioned that Manny Asuncion, a union leader and one of the Bloody Sunday victims, was his friend, despite their difference in political views. “I am one with those who are saddened by that incident. I am not letting it pass. The NBI [National Bureau of Investigation] is investigating it and I am looking to answer those so-called EJKs [extrajudicial killings],” Remulla said. He added that, if more witnesses could be found, they would be protected, unless they are uniformed personnel. Castro ended her interpellation by urging the DOJ to reform under Remulla’s watch.
Philippines removed from Taiwan’s visa-free list | PHILSTAR.COM – Taiwan has removed the Philippines from the list of countries eligible for visa-free entry starting next week. Taiwan’s Bureau of Consular Affairs announced that visitors from Brunei, Chile, Dominican Republic, Israel, Japan, Malaysia, Nicaragua, the Philippines, South Korea, Singapore, Thailand and Russia are under the “Temporarily Suspending” visa-free category. On Sept. 5, Taiwan’s Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) said it would restore visa exemption treatment for citizens of Australia, US, Canada, New Zealand and countries in Europe as well as Taiwan’s diplomatic allies starting on Sept. 12. “The CECC reminds the public that border and relevant epidemic prevention measures will be adjusted on a rolling basis based on developments in the pandemic situation,” CECC said in a statement posted on its website. Travelers to Taiwan will still be required to undergo a three-day quarantine and polymerase chain reaction test upon arrival.
