Reso pushing for PH court remedies before ICC action reaches Senate floor

The Senate on Tuesday began tackling a resolution seeking to express the sense of the chamber to allow Filipinos accused of crimes abroad to first avail legal remedies from Philippine courts before they are surrendered to international tribunals.

During the plenary session, Senator Rodante Marcoleta sponsored proposed Senate Resolution No. 307.

He stressed that it is not solely about former President Rodrigo Duterte and it is not limited to matters involving the International Criminal Court (ICC). 

“This is not obstruction, Mr. President. This is not delay for delay’s sake. This is the minimum requirement of Constitutional fairness. Justice to be legitimate must be both firm and fair, and fairness demands that before the irreversible act of surrender, the Filipino citizen, any Filipino citizen, be allowed to invoke the protection of Philippine courts,” Marcoleta said.

“This is not the defiance of international law, Mr. President. This is fidelity to the Constitution,” he added.

“This resolution does not obstruct justice. It does not shield wrongdoing. It simply demands that prior to surrender or extradition, a Filipino be given reasonable time to access the courts. Is this not the very essence of due process?” Marcoleta said.

On Monday, the ICC on Monday began the confirmation of charges against Duterte, who is facing allegations of crimes against humanity in connection with his war on illegal drugs.

On the first day of the hearing, ICC Senior Trial Lawyer Julian Nicholls mentioned Senators Ronald “Bato” Dela Rosa and Christopher Lawrence “Bong” Go as among the former President’s co-perpetrators in alleged killings during his term as mayor of Davao City.

Under proposed Senate Resolution 307 filed on February 18, the Senate minority bloc sought protection for all Filipinos against extraordinary rendition and guarantee them a reasonable time prior to their surrender by or extradition from the Philippines to seek redress from the courts and avail of legal remedies possible. 

Other senators who delivered their co-sponsorship speech for the resolution included Sen. Imee Marcos, Jinggoy Estrada, Bong Go, and Robin Padilla. 

The upper chamber is expected to continue the deliberations on the resolution on Wednesday afternoon. — JMA, GMA Integrated News