Analyst Heydarian's take on effectivity of PHL's withdrawal from ICC

Even if the Philippines had withdrawn its membership from the International Criminal Court (ICC), GMA resident analyst Richard Heydarian believes current government officials accused of committing crimes against humanity may still be held accountable.

Interviewed on Unang Balita on Tuesday, Heydarian said the Philippines' withdrawal from the ICC may have prompted the court to expedite its process of preliminary assessment of the allegations against the Duterte administration.

"Dahil nag-withdraw tayo at mag-effective soon ang ating withdrawal, in a way na-encourage 'yung ICC na i-speed up 'yung processing ng initial preliminary assessment nung mga so-called communications o allegations of crimes against humanity laban sa administrasyon na ito," he said.

"The moment na mag-activate 'yan, hindi ito magi-stop, 'yung jurisdiction ng court, doon sa panahon na member pa rin tayo ng ICC. So, of course, 'yung allegations laban sa Duterte administration is beginning June 2016. So any crime supposedly committed between June 2016 and then March 2019, covered pa rin ng ICC," he added.

"Walang takas doon sa accountability if ever talaga may nagawa ang gobyerno na ito."

'Diplomatic problem'

Moreover, Heydarian warned that the Philippines' diplomatic relations with other nations may be adversely affected if the country and its local officials will be investigated by the Hague-based tribunal.

"There is a potential na actually in the coming weeks, magkaroon ng announcement ang ICC na magmo-move sila from preliminary assessment to investigation," Heydarian said.

"The moment na under shadow of investigation ang Philippine officials, that would create a diplomatic problem for us. Kasi kung isa kang world leader, parang magdadalawang-isip ka na makipaghalubilo sa isang tao kung 'yung tao na 'yun ay puwedeng ma-prosecute," he added.

Charges vs. Duterte

President Rodrigo Duterte is facing charges before the ICC for alleged drug war-related crimes committed since he assumed presidency in 2016.

Duterte has been insisting that the ICC has no jurisdiction over him, noting that the Rome Statute is not enforceable in the Philippines because it was not published in a government publication or any commercial newspaper.

Fatou Bensouda, an ICC prosecutor, opened a preliminary examination of accusations of crimes against humanity against Duterte in February 2018. Weeks after that, Duterte declared the Philippines' withdrawal of membership from the ICC.

The withdrawal will take effect on March 17.  —Anna Felicia Bajo/KBK, GMA News