ASEANEWS HEADLINE-POLITICS, DU30 EJK ICC TRIAL.. | MANILA, Philippines: ICC rejects Duterte camp’s plea to remove 2 judges
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ICC rejects Duterte’s bid to excuse 2 judges from jurisdiction challenge | ANC
MANILA, Philippines — International Criminal Court pre-trial judges have dismissed the petition of lawyers of former president Rodrigo Duterte to “excuse” two judges from adjudicating the defense team’s challenge to the ICC’s jurisdiction over the case.
In a four-page decision dated May 6, the ICC Pre-Trial Court I denied the defense’s request that Judges Reine AdeÏlaïde Sophie Alapini-Gansou and MariÏa del Socorro Flores Liera be barred temporarily from exercising their functions in relation to the jurisdiction issue.
The defense said that preventing the two judges from adjudicating the jurisdiction issue was “justified and, moreover, appropriate given the possibility of perceived bias,” citing their previous rulings on the case. The prosecution has contested the request.
In its ruling, the Pre-Trial Chamber I said “a judge’s excusal from the exercise of a function may only be sought by the concerned judge directly before the [ICC] Presidency.”
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It noted that this is different from a disqualification that the prosecution or the person being investigated or prosecuted may submit to the ICC presidency.
“The possibility for that person to invite or request judges to seek excusal before the Presidency is thus not contemplated in the statutory texts. As stated by the Presidency, ‘no preemptive request may be made by the parties that a judge request his or her excusal’ and such course of action ‘lacks procedural propriety,’” it added.
The decision was signed by Presiding Judge Iulia Antoanella Motoc, along with Alapini-Gansou and Liera.
Motoc was elected presiding judge of the chamber in March 2024. Alapini-Gansou and Liera were among those who signed the 2021 and 2023 rulings that authorized the ICC prosecutor to conduct an investigation on the situation in the Philippines.
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Meanwhile, in a separate filing, ICC prosecutor Karim Khan confirmed the disclosure of another 139 items that would serve as evidence against Duterte.
It was divided into four packages: 28 items listed as “contextual elements,” 85 items as “modes of liability,” one item related to alleged crimes when Duterte was Davao City mayor and 15 items during barangay clearance operations when he was president.
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“These items comprise documentary material cited in the Warrant of Arrest for Mr. Rodrigo Roa Duterte,” the filing read.
The Pre-Trial Chamber I earlier gave the prosecution until July 1 to disclose evidence that it will use during the confirmation of charges hearing on Sept. 23.
Counter-affidavit
In Manila where supporters of Duterte were questioning the legality of his arrest and turnover to The Hague, the Marcos administration has vowed to comply with the Office of the Ombudsman’s directive to answer the allegations of unlawful acts in the arrest of the former president.
The Senate foreign relations committee led by President Marcos’ elder sister Sen. Imee Marcos has filed a complaint against five officials over Duterte’s apprehension and turnover to ICC custody last March 11, accusing them of various criminal and administrative offenses.
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Acting on a complaint filed by Senator Marcos, the anti-graft body directed Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla, Interior and Local Government Secretary Jonvic Remulla, Philippine National Police chief Gen. Rommel Marbil, Criminal Investigation and Detection Group chief Maj. Gen. Nicolas Torre III and Philippine special envoy on transnational crime Ambassador Markus Lacanilao to submit within 10 days from their receipt of the order their counter-affidavits, as well as those of their witnesses and supporting documents.
“We know the authority of the ombudsman. We will respond to the swift action made by the ombudsman on the complaint of Sen. Imee Marcos. The officials will answer and will submit their counter-affidavits. We will once again say that what they did was in accordance with the law,” Presidential Communications Undersecretary Claire Castro said at a briefing.
“The President always says, ‘Follow the law, whatever is stated in valid and legal procedures should be followed,’” she added.
Castro also refuted the claim of Vice President Sara Duterte, daughter of the former president, that Marcos should be held accountable for the arrest of her father.
“The administration’s action was in accordance with the law and was done in cooperation with the Interpol (International Criminal Police Organization). The government surrendered former president Duterte and he is considered an accused, a crimes against humanity suspect, particularly murder, which was filed by a fellow Filipino and an alleged victim of extrajudicial killings in the bloody war on drugs,” Castro said.
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“What the government did was to surrender, not sovereignty, but an accused,” she added.
The Palace press officer likewise described as “baseless” Sara’s statement that Marcos had committed impeachable offenses, specifically culpable violation of the Constitution and betrayal of public trust, because of the arrest.
Petitions have been filed before the Supreme Court challenging the legality of Duterte’s arrest on the ground that the Philippines is no longer part of ICC. Duterte withdrew the country from the Rome Statute, the treaty that established the ICC, in 2019.
‘Nothing to hide’
The Department of Justice chief, meanwhile, vowed to file his counter-affidavit as required by the ombudsman.
“Everything that happened was within legal bounds and according to law,” Remulla said.
The justice secretary also questioned the procedures of the ombudsman, saying he found the complaint “weird’ and “a little strange,” since it was not based on a committee report but on a chairman’s report.
“Why the haste? Why not wait for the committee report? Because that’s a committee investigation,” Remulla said.
He also said the ombudsman seemed to have skipped some procedures.
“There should be fact-finding, and rules published. Now, fact-finding appears to have been sidestepped. It got to us directly. I will not insinuate anything. I’m just saying that the rules we hold important appeared to have been ignored,” DOJ’s Remulla said.
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He also questioned the timing of the filing of the complaint. “This will be over after the elections. They just want election publicity. We can’t do anything about it,” he added.
Marbil also said he is preparing his response to the ombudsman’s directive. – Daphne Galvez, Alexis Romero, EJ Macababbad
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