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Arrest of an alleged drug dealer in the Philippines (2018)
Photo: NOEL CELIS / AFP
The Government of the Philippines will not cooperate with the World Criminal Court in bringing about alleged murders in the government's controversial anti-drug war.
"We will not cooperate because we are no longer a member of the ICC (International Criminal Court)," announced government spokesman Harry Roque.
His country is quite able to judge itself.
"We don't need foreigners to investigate the drug war murders because the systems work in the Philippines," said Roque.
Thousands of people are said to have been killed by death squads in the anti-drug war since President Rodrigo Duterte took office in mid-2016.
The outgoing chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, Fatou Bensouda, filed for an official investigation against the Southeast Asian island nation on Monday for alleged murders in the state campaign against drugs. Tens of thousands of people may have been killed in the "War on Drugs", according to The Hague. The prosecution has been investigating crime allegations in the Philippines since 2018. There are indications "that members of the National Police of the Philippines, along with others, illegally killed several thousands to tens of thousands of people," said Bensouda. In addition, torture and other crimes have been investigated since 2011.
After the preliminary investigations were announced, Duterte had declared his country's withdrawal from the court.
But according to the basic treaty, the ICC remains responsible for crimes that were committed during the time when the Philippines were still a contracting state.
However, the prosecution still needs a court order to initiate an official investigation.
It is not known when the judges will decide.
One possible procedure would have to lead Bensouda's successor Karim Khan, who officially takes over her office on Wednesday.
as / dpa