Sister of 2 EJK victims preparing to participate in ICC trial vs. Rodrigo Duterte

The sister of two extrajudicial killings in the past administration’s deadly drug war is now in The Hague, Netherlands to prepare for her application to participate in the trial against former president Rodrigo Duterte before the International Criminal Court (ICC). 

According to Mariz Umali’s report in “24 Oras” on Thursday, “Mira” said that two of her siblings were mistaken for drug involvement and were accused of retaliating against authorities during a police operation in May 2017.

“Para ipakita na talagang may mga biktima, nandidito kami, marami talaga. At marami talagang takot kahit alam nila na biktima sila. Talagang natatakot sila,” said “Mira.” 

(I want to prove there are really victims, that we exist and there are many of us. I also want to prove that many victims are afraid to speak up.) 

Based on the 16-page document submitted by the ICC registry to the Pre-Trial Chamber I, they noted that they already had three consultations with over 200 representatives of more than 2,000 EJK victims and over 1,500 families. 

The ICC said the consultations were not about Duterte’s case for alleged crimes against humanity.

“When we have an investigation regarding a certain conflict or certain zone like in the Philippines, we need to already kind of contact the media and contact the victims, and try to prepare for when a case would come,” said ICC spokesperson Fadi El Abdallah. 

“For example, part of the consultation with the victims was about how can they identify themselves? Are there ID cards? Are there official documentation? Are there any unofficial documentation that can be provided to kind of prove their identity and so on?” he added. 

The ICC registry asked the pre-trial chamber if it can accept various IDs issued by the Philippine government as the unified national ID has yet to be fully implemented in the country. 

Further, the ICC spokesperson said that not all victims could be considered as witnesses. He added that they are not expecting many witnesses to be presented during the confirmation of charges in September. 

“A witness is a person who is called by the parties, by the prosecution, or by the defense, or the judges by that matter to testify, to provide a valuable information that can be useful for the judges to decide on a certain case. A witness may or not be a victim. An expert is a witness, an insider is a witness. There are different types of witnesses, but not necessarily a victim,” said Abdallah. 

The ICC, however, assured that the identities of the victims will remain confidential. 

Duterte is being held responsible for the drug war that resulted in the deaths of at least 6,000 people. He is currently detained at Hague Penitentiary Institution or the Scheveningen Prison. 

Government records showed that there are over 6,000 drug suspects killed in police operations. Human rights organizations, however, estimate the death toll may have reached 30,000 due to unreported incidents. —Vince Angelo Ferreras/RF, GMA Integrated News