Palace: No Interpol request yet, will proceed if there is
Senator Ronald dela Rosa on Thursday taunted the administration to “go ahead” and surrender him to the International Criminal Court in connection with the crimes against humanity case of former President Rodrigo Duterte.
“If they want to commit the same mistake again, then go ahead. They can do that,” Dela Rosa said.
“What they did to President Duterte, that was a big mistake,” he added.
Malacañang, however, clarified the government has not received any official communication from the International Criminal Police Organization (Interpol) regarding fresh arrest warrants.
“As of now, we have not received any communication regarding arrest warrants for the co-perpetrators of former president Duterte,” Palace Press Officer Claire Castro said in a press briefing yesterday.
Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin on Wednesday told Kyodo News an arrest could be made against Duterte’s co-accused if Interpol issues a red notice to effect the ICC warrant.
“If…there is (an Interpol notice), we proceed. But if the Supreme Court comes out with a ruling that (says) you must afford full due process before you surrender anyone, that’s what we are going to do,” Bersamin said.
Duterte was arrested at the airport upon returning from Hong Kong on March 11 and was immediately flown to The Hague, Netherlands where he was turned over to the ICC Detention Center.
ICC prosecutors earlier identified nine of Duterte’s co-perpetrators in their arrest warrant application. While the names of the nine were redacted, Dela Rosa’s name was mentioned in the document.
He was then the chief of police and lead implementer of the Duterte administration’s war on drugs.
Asked if he would go into hiding to evade arrest, Dela Rosa said he will “cross the bridge when the bridge is constructed.”
“Why do I have to tell you? The preparation is mine alone,” he said.
“If you are facing a government that is not observing, is not trying to preserve its sovereignty, then I don’t have to answer that question,” the senator added.
In May, human rights lawyer Kristina Conti said Dela Rosa played a key role in the drug war killings in the country.
“I am pretty sure Bato dela Rosa will receive the next summons or warrant of arrest in the Philippine situation. This is because he would appear to be one of the most responsible for the killings in the war on drugs, not only because he was chief of police of Davao and the Philippines, but because he was implementor of the Davao Death Squad,” said Conti, who is also an assistant to counsel at the ICC.
