News

Duterte's rants in Senate hearing further solidifies case against him in ICC

,

Former President Rodrigo Duterte’s testimony at the Senate hearing has further solidified the case against him before the International Criminal Court (ICC). Duterte and his officials are currently facing charges of crimes against humanity related to the widespread killings during the “war on drugs” before and during his presidency. Two of his co-accused, Senators Bato de la Rosa and Bong Go, were present as “investigators” during the hearing.

The hearing on October 28 freely gave Duterte several hours to repeat his previous rants about the “war” that killed an estimated 30,000 individuals. He claimed “legal and moral responsibility” for the bloody campaign and stated that he had no regrets and would provide no excuses. He even warned senators “not to question” his policies. Many of his statements seemed to admit to crimes, which he downplayed as jokes or through curses. These included his alleged 7-man death squad in Davao and his orders for police to provoke suspects into fighting back so the latter could be “finished off.” Many of his statements were contradictory, particularly in response to some senators’ questions.

The hearing served as a platform for Duterte to counter the testimonies against him that were previously presented in Congress. These include Royima Garma’s testimony, who exposed Duterte’s reward system for each suspect the police killed. Duterte was fervently defended by Senator de la Rosa, one of the main proponents of the bogus campaign. De la Rosa also attacked the invited “resource speakers” who testified to the brutal and illegal killings of the previous regime.

Is the Senate hearing a “show of force or a farce?” Rise UP for Life and Rights, an organization of victims of the fake war and their lawyers from the National Union of People’s Lawyers, questioned the proceedings.

“(A)s an investigation into the “war on drugs” by the Senate opens, we are aghast that it has become a platform for those involved and accused,” said the two groups. They said the first day raised questions on the independence and integrity of the Senate investigation. They feared that it would be used to whitewash the entire bloody “war.” They also called Go and de la Rosa as having “no decency” for refusing to inhibit themselves from the hearing.

Karapatan general secretary Tinay Palabay said there was nothing new in Duterte’s statements at the Senate. “The hearing just became a circus,” she said. “It [seems] that the purpose…is to defuse the ticking bomb in the House of Representatives which, if allowed to reach their logical conclusion, would end up blowing up in the face of the Marcos Jr regime.”

Palabay explained that Marcos Jr has not changed the bloody campaigns and Duterte’s “hit list” system. The “war on drugs” remains bloody, according to the monitoring of Dahas.ph. The state continues to use extrajudicial killings as a tool to suppress widespread resistance and sow terror, she said.

While the hearing was being held, various organizations, including families of victims of the “war on drugs,” protested outside the Senate.

AB: Duterte's rants in Senate hearing further solidifies case against him in ICC