The arrest of former President Rodrigo R. Duterte was legal, as confirmed by a Filipino lawyer accredited by the International Criminal Court (ICC) on Friday.
Joel Butuyan told a briefing at the Philippine Information Agency in Quezon City that Philippine authorities adhered to the procedures of Republic Act No. 9851, known as the “Philippine Act on Crimes Against International Humanitarian Law, Genocide, and Other Crimes Against Humanity.”
Butuyan described RA 9851 as a “mirror image” of the Rome Statute, the treaty establishing the ICC.
Butuyan said that Duterte’s arrest complied with Article 17 of the Rome Statute, which allows the Philippines to directly surrender any individual to the ICC for prosecution for international crimes.
Duterte was taken into custody by the ICC on March 11, following an arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Police Organization (Interpol). He was flown to The Hague, where he is now awaiting trial for crimes against humanity, specifically regarding the killings that occurred during his administration’s war on illegal drugs.
“We fully complied with our domestic law, dahil nga mayroong discretion ‘yung Philippine government to directly surrender the suspect to the international court,” Butuyan said.
Butuyan cited the key points of Article 59 of the Rome Statute, stating that the arrest procedure does not require approval from a domestic judicial authority, provided that the identity of the accused is confirmed and their rights are upheld.
“Hindi kinakailangang dumaan sa domestic judicial authority, for as long as ‘yung substance ng Article 59 is complied with, which is, ‘yung identity ng accused at saka kung respected ‘yung rights ng accused,” Butuyan said.
He stressed that Duterte was informed and read of his rights and had legal representation during the arrest.
“Hindi kailangang ipakita’ yung physical warrant of arrest at the time of arrest for as long as there (is an existing) warrant of arrest, pupuwedeng mag-aresto,” he said.
Butuyan also noted that in the ICC, physical warrants are not required, as the organization operates entirely with electronic documents, even for trials and proceedings. | PND
