Authorities arrested former Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte at Manila’s international airports on Tuesday following guidelines from the International Criminal Court regarding a scenario of crime against humanity, according to Spanish government authorities.
Upon his return from Hong Kong, law police took Duterte into captivity based on ICC directions. The elderly former president is charged with” the crime against humanity” by the ICC, following a plan where human rights companies estimate that law enforcement and vigilant groups killed tens of thousands of poor people, usually without evidence for their role in opioids.
” Early in the morning, Interpol Manila received the official version of the permit of the imprisonment from the ICC”, stated the political office in an announcement. ” As of now, he is under the guardianship of government”. The statement further indicated that” the former senator and his party are in great health and are being checked by government physicians”.
The ICC initiated its probe into drug-related deaths under Duterte’s tenure spanning from November 1, 2011, as mayor of Davao, through March 16, 2019, examining potential crimes against humanity. In 2019, Duterte withdrew the Philippines from the Rome Statute, an action rights advocates view as an attempt to avoid responsibility for the killings.
In late 2021, Duterte’s government attempted to halt the international court’s investigation, contending that Philippine authorities were already examining identical allegations and disputing the ICC’s jurisdiction as a court of final resort.
ICC appeals judges authorised the investigation’s continuation in July 2023, dismissing the Duterte administration’s challenges. The ICC, situated in The Hague, Netherlands, intervenes when nations are unable or unwilling to prosecute individuals suspected of severe international offences, including genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity.
While President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., who followed Duterte in 2022 and later entered a fierce political conflict with him, opted against rejoining the international court, his administration indicated it would assist if the ICC requests international police assistance through a Red Notice to detain Duterte, which enables worldwide law enforcement to locate and temporarily arrest suspects.
