“Malacañang has said President Marcos is ‘open’ to discussing the possibility of rejoining the ICC”
Will the Philippines rejoin the International Criminal Court or ICC?
This possibility is not remote at all with the recent recommendation by the United Nations special rapporteur Irene Khan for the Philippine government to do just that, and ratify as well the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance.
“Both instruments would significantly enhance human rights protection and support the enjoyment of the right to freedom of expression,” Khan said in a report she presented to the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva, Switzerland, recently.
Given the persistence of enforced disappearances, unlawful killings and impunity in the country, her suggestion merits serious consideration by the Marcos Jr. administration.
Malacañang has said President Marcos is “open” to discussing the possibility of rejoining the ICC now that the Philippine government has already caused the arrest of former President Rodrigo Duterte and sent him to the ICC in The Hague for trial for crimes against humanity. j
Even though he voted to ratify the Rome Treaty that established the ICC in August 2011 when he was still a senator, President Marcos Jr. had repeatedly maintained the government would not cooperate with its investigation of alleged human rights violations in the drug war after the country’s withdrawal from the Rome treaty on then President Duterte’s order which took effect in 2019.
But the Marcos Jr. administration’s move in early March to have ex-president Duterte arrested and sent to The Hague could pave the way for the eventual return of the country to the ICC.
The Philippines was obliged to cooperate with the International Criminal Police Organization after the ICC asked for help in serving an arrest warrant on Duterte and others charged with enforcing his violent antinarcotics campaign.
Khan visited the Philippines in early 2024 where she met with national and local government officials, representatives of various civil society organizations, as well as journalists and media workers.
She said the country was “privileged” to have civil society and media sectors that were “active in all regions and working in different dialects” while serving as an “intermediary” between the State and the public.
Khan noted, however, that Red-tagging remained a “serious threat” against civil society, with the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-Elcac) acting as the main instigator.
“Although the government has sought to reassure the Special Rapporteur that it does not undertake, encourage or condone such practices, there is considerable evidence that Red-tagging is being used by the security forces as part of their strategy to counter terrorism,” her report said.
During the first half of 2024, more than 450 Red-tagging incidents were recorded, 17 percent of which targeted young people and 61 percent were attributed to government actors, according to data from the Ateneo Human Rights Center.
“It is clear that such vilification is aimed not only at those who are allegedly associated with proscribed or listed organizations, but also at legitimate activists and activities, sowing distrust between the State, communities and civil society,” Khan noted.
The practice of Red-tagging is “often followed or accompanied by unlawful surveillance, criminal prosecution, including the filing of trumped-up charges, threats and even killings,” she reported, adding that such actions seek to suppress legitimate activism and undermine independent journalism.
Her conclusion: the Philippines is still a “dangerous country” for journalists, despite the lower number of attacks against the press under the Marcos administration.
Data from the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization showed that 117 journalists were killed in the Philippines in the past 30 years, yet only 10 cases were resolved.
“Since June 2022, the government has taken some measures to end the horrendous attacks on human rights by the previous administration, especially on freedom of expression, but they have not been enough to turn the page decisively on the past,” Khan conceded.
But, she pointed out, “the Government must embark on more significant legal, policy and institutional changes to demonstrate its commitment to freedom of expression.”
We agree completely.
(Email: ernhil@yahoo.com)
