Malacañang will refer any possible requests from the International Criminal Court (ICC) to freeze former President Rodrigo Duterte’s assets to the Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC), the Presidential Communications Office (PCO) said Tuesday.
PCO Undersecretary Claire Castro said the AMLC would be the appropriate agency to handle such matters, even though the Philippines does not recognize the ICC’s jurisdiction.
“If the ICC issues an order, we will refer it to the AMLC if necessary,” she said in a press briefing.
Castro said the AMLC operates independently when investigating financial activities, especially in cases involving alleged plunder.
“When it comes to freezing assets, Senator [Antonio] Trillanes already filed a plunder case against former President Duterte and Senator Bong Go,” she said.
“The AMLC should have assessed whether asset freezing was necessary from the start because the case is plunder,” Castro added.
Asked if complying with an ICC order would amount to cooperating with the court, Castro maintained that forwarding the request to the AMLC was a procedural step.
“The AMLC has no biases,” she said. “If the need arises to provide reparations or damages to victims, then justice must be served.”
The Philippines withdrew from the ICC in 2019, but the court is continuing its investigation into alleged crimes against humanity related to the Duterte administration’s war on drugs.