No directive yet to Hague diplomatic post on Duterte arrest — DFA

Foreign Affairs Secretary Enrique Manalo said Tuesday he has yet to issue a directive to the Philippine Embassy in The Hague, Netherlands in relation to the arrest of former President Rodrigo Duterte for crimes against humanity.

"We have to see how the event would unfold," Manalo told reporters in a chance interview after a meeting in Manila with Slovenian Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Tanja Fajon.

Manalo made the remark hours after Duterte was arrested by authorities following an order from the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague.

The foreign affairs chief declined to comment when asked what would be the DFA's role on the matter, saying his agency has not had any contact with the ICC since Manila withdrew its membership from the Rome Statute that created the world court during Duterte's term in 2019.

Duterte, who preceded President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr., oversaw a deadly crackdown that, according to government records, left at least 6,200 drug suspects killed in police operations from June 2016 to November 2021.

However, international and Philippine human rights organizations have cited much higher death tolls and the scale of the drug deaths prompted the filing by some groups of complaints before the International Criminal Court, which is investigating the widespread drug killings.

Manalo said the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG), the Philippine National Police (PNP), and the Department of Justice (DOJ) are handling the issue on Duterte's arrest.

"The best is to ask the agencies who are directly involved in this issue. We defer to them on this issue. I'm not familiar with the procedure because we are no longer a member of the ICC," he said.

Duterte was arrested after arriving from Hong Kong and was taken into police custody after the ICC warrant was served.

From the airport, the 79-year-old Duterte was taken to Villamor Airbase and examined by government doctors. It was not immediately clear if he will be flown directly to the ICC headquarters in The Hague to face charges against him.

The ICC started its probe on the massive drug killings as possible crimes against humanity under Duterte from November 2011 when he was still mayor of Davao City up to March 16, 2019 before Manila terminated its membership to the Rome Statute. — VDV, GMA Integrated News