Up to 4 drug war witnesses under protection after ICC request —SOJ Remulla

Three to four witnesses in the case of former President Rodrigo Duterte before the International Criminal Court (ICC) are currently under government protection, Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla said Thursday.

In an ambush interview, Remulla confirmed that the ICC requested the government to provide protection for the witnesses, saying this is already ongoing.

“We will protect the witnesses. Whatever it takes to protect the witnesses, we will do it. Because ano eh— prosecution would rely on these witnesses,” he said.

“Hanggang dito lang sa Pilipinas. Syempre pag dating doon kanila na ‘yan. Pero habang nandito ‘yan, we exhaust our obligation to them. if we can protect witnesses for other cases, why not in this case,” he added.

(Only up to here in the Philippines. Of course, once they get there, it’s already under their jurisdiction. But while they’re still here, we exhaust our obligation to them. If we can protect witnesses for other cases, why not in this case?)

According to Remulla, more individuals may be placed under witness protection.

Meanwhile, the Secretary said that cooperating with the tribunal is not contradictory to the government’s position that the Philippines is no longer a member of the ICC.

The Philippines withdrew from the Rome Statute, which established the ICC, in March 2019 during the Duterte administration. 

Since then, Philippine officials have maintained that the ICC has no jurisdiction in the country.

Following the arrest and transfer of Duterte to the ICC in March, Malacañang said the ICC can look into the crimes that Duterte allegedly committed because they took place before the membership withdrawal.

“We already chose not to pursue the cases and let the ICC pursue these cases. Given that, it also becomes our obligation to help them because we are giving up our jurisdiction for their jurisdiction,” Remulla said.

“Kasi nga ang hirap nga i-prove ‘yung case dito at i-build up ‘yung kaso, dahil ‘yung mga kailangan mong magsalita ay kasama sa krimen. Kaya kumplikado rito,” he added.

(Because it’s really hard to prove the case and build it up here, since the people who need to speak up are also involved in the crime. That’s what makes it complicated.)

When asked if the cooperation means that the Philippines may return to the ICC, Remulla said this is a decision that will have to be made “as a country.”

Based on government records, around 6,200 drug suspects were killed during the Duterte administration's anti-drug operations. Human rights organizations, however, say that the number may reach 30,000 due to the unreported related slays. —AOL, GMA Integrated News