President Duterte

[Topgun]

ICC opens investigation into Philippines President Duterte

Draconian laws in the Philippines’s war on drugs may be catching up with President Rodrigo Duterte as the International Criminal Court just approved a formal investigation into possible crimes against humanity under his regime. The ICC reviewed materials and announced the decision to pursue Duterte yesterday. Judges have approved the request by prosecutors to look into possible crimes against humanity charges involving murders as part of Duterte’s war on drugs. Their analysis categorized his campaign as a systematic attack on civilians and said that it cannot be seen as a legitimate law enforcement operation, after viewing materials the prosecutors presented to the court.

The Philippines had become notorious for their incredibly strict stance against drugs with president Duterte leading a charge that all but granted permission to police to execute drug dealers, though he claims killing is only allowed in self-defence. Still, since coming to power in June of 2016 police report more than 6,600 people have died in the war on drugs and outside sources believe it could be a much higher number. Many have claimed that innocents including children have been murdered as well as minor drug users, plus rumours tell of corruption that supported vigilante killings and extrajudicial executions, claims that the police repeatedly deny.

Karapatan, a rights group in the Philippines, lauded the court’s statements, saying it reaffirms the opinion of the families of the victims of Duterte’s merciless battle to rid the Philippines of drugs, and suggest that the regime should face accountability for the crimes. The ICC is limited in its scope and can only investigate crimes committed between July of 2016 and March of 2019, after which Duterte withdrew the Philippines from membership. The judges believe that crimes continued well after that date, but cannot include those in their investigation.

Duterte has stood strong even when facing the prospect of the ICC investigation, maintaining his harsh standpoint as recently as July when he defended the strict and often fatal hardline against drugs without remorse. “I have never denied (it), and the ICC can record it: Those who destroy my country… I will kill you.

[Sundance2020]

International Criminal Court pauses probe into Philippines president’s bloody war on drugs



The investigation into Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte’s bloody war on drugs has been temporarily suspended by the International Criminal Court. The ICC launched the probe into alleged human rights violations during the president’s campaign against illegal drugs where thousands have died since Duterte took office in June 2016. The Court has reportedly halted the investigation to review a deferral request from Manila, which has been seen as a major setback for human rights activists to press the Court to continue its probe.

The ICC investigation into the accusations on the president by families of the victims and human rights organisations was approved after a Philippine lawyer submitted a complaint of “killings innocent lives”. Duterte refuted the allegations, claiming he was groundlessly attacked by UN officials and self-defense was employed against the suspects when the arrests were opposed despite dozens of children being killed in the police raids.

Philippine Ambassador Eduardo Malaya on Friday, according to court filings, requested a postponement of the probe, stating that the Philippine government was investigating on its own. The prosecutor from ICC, Karim Khan, said the prosecution was on hold to investigate the deferral request, adding that they would ask the Philippine administration for more details.

The Human Rights Watch has condemned the decision made by ICC, citing there won’t be justice to the victims and families as the Philippines’ preposterous investigation will only lead to avoid the further probe by the court. HRW’s Asia director Brad Adams says…

“Impunity is the norm under President Duterte, which is why the ICC needs to investigate.”

The National Union of People’s Lawyers, which represents a number of victims’ families, has stated that the ICC probe is the sole hope of seeing justice for their clients, mentioning the efforts in recent months had offered them a glimpse of optimism.

“We can’t take that away from them right now”.

Since July 2016, at least 6,181 people have been killed in over 200,000 anti-drug operations, according to official figures. Prosecutors at the ICC estimate that between 12,000 and 30,000 people have died.

[Sundance2020]

ICC opens investigation into Philippines President Duterte



Draconian laws in the Philippines’s war on drugs may be catching up with President Rodrigo Duterte as the International Criminal Court just approved a formal investigation into possible crimes against humanity under his regime. The ICC reviewed materials and announced the decision to pursue Duterte yesterday.

Judges have approved the request by prosecutors to look into possible crimes against humanity charges involving murders as part of Duterte’s war on drugs. Their analysis categorized his campaign as a systematic attack on civilians and said that it cannot be seen as a legitimate law enforcement operation, after viewing materials the prosecutors presented to the court.

The Philippines had become notorious for their incredibly strict stance against drugs with president Duterte leading a charge that all but granted permission to police to execute drug dealers, though he claims killing is only allowed in self-defence. Still, since coming to power in June of 2016 police report more than 6,600 people have died in the war on drugs and outside sources believe it could be a much higher number.
Many have claimed that innocents including children have been murdered as well as minor drug users, plus rumours tell of corruption that supported vigilante killings and extrajudicial executions, claims that the police repeatedly deny.

Karapatan, a rights group in the Philippines, lauded the court’s statements, saying it reaffirms the opinion of the families of the victims of Duterte’s merciless battle to rid the Philippines of drugs, and suggest that the regime should face accountability for the crimes.

The ICC is limited in its scope and can only investigate crimes committed between July of 2016 and March of 2019, after which Duterte withdrew the Philippines from membership. The judges believe that crimes continued well after that date, but cannot include those in their investigation.

Duterte has stood strong even when facing the prospect of the ICC investigation, maintaining his harsh standpoint as recently as July when he defended the strict and often fatal hardline against drugs without remorse.

“I have never denied (it), and the ICC can record it: Those who destroy my country… I will kill you.”

[Sundance2020]

Duterte orders the arrest of unvaccinated people who violate stay-at-home rule



Amid a surge in Covid-19 infections in the Philippines, President Rodrigo Duterte is coming down hard on the unvaccinated. The government recently tightened restrictions in Manila and several provinces, including banning unvaccinated people from leaving home unless for exercise or to purchase essentials. According to an AFP report, Duterte has gone as far as to sanction the arrest of anyone who violates the stay-at-home order.

“Because it’s a national emergency, it is my position that we can restrain people who have not got their shots. I am now giving orders (to the village chiefs) to look for those persons who are not vaccinated and just request them or order them, if you may, to stay put. And if he refuses and goes out of the house and goes around in the community or maybe everywhere, he can be restrained. If he refuses then the (official) is empowered to arrest the recalcitrant persons.”

The new rules, which are in place until mid-January, mean that anyone who is unvaccinated must remain at home unless purchasing essential supplies or exercising. Restaurants, beauty salons, parks, and churches have all been ordered to operate with reduced capacity, while in-person learning and contact sports have been suspended.

The tougher restrictions are being brought in amid an alarming surge in infections, with case numbers tripling in the last 2 days, according to the AFP report. Health officials have said they expect to see infections continue to rise in the coming days, before peaking around the end of January.

Yesterday, new infections rose to over 17,000, which was more than 3 times Tuesday’s tally. Officials say the steep rise is being driven by the highly-contagious Omicron variant. To date, nearly 2.9 million people in the Philippines have contracted the virus and nearly 52,000 have died.

The Philippines has a population of over 100 million people and Covid-19 vaccination is voluntary. AFP reports that less than half the population have opted for inoculation, a fact that has left Duterte “appalled”.

“If you don’t get a jab, you put everybody in jeopardy.”