FORMER President Rodrigo Duterte is criminally responsible for three counts – a total of 49 incidents of murder and attempted murder – of crimes against humanity, according to the International Criminal Court. At the outset, the ICC said that “the actual scale of victimization during the charged period was significantly greater, as reflected in the widespread nature of the attack.”
Falling under Count 1 were murders committed while Duterte was mayor of Davao between 2013 and 2016. Count 2 covers the murder of high-value targets in 2016 and 2017, when Duterte had become President, while Count 3 pertains to murder and attempted murder during barangay clearance operations between 2016 and 2018.
The ICC also said that together with his co-perpetrators, Duterte established a network made up of State actors such as law enforcement officers, non-police assets, and hitmen in operations to kill alleged criminals.
It added that the attacks were widespread and systematic, with a clear pattern of violence against a civilian population.
The charging of Duterte comes just a day after massive protests were held in various locations, illustrating Filipinos’ outrage at the abuse of taxpayers’ money supposedly for flood-control projects. There were attempts to hijack the protests and turn them into “Bring Duterte home” campaigns. Such attempts were overwhelming failures.
Nonetheless, even as the public continues to seethe with anger over the revelations of systemic corruption, we must guard against denial, revisionism, and even sympathy moves for an allegedly frail old man who no longer has the faculties to stand trial on an international stage.
He issued those kill orders and bragged about them. He showed no mercy. He dared the courts to hold him accountable. And now that he has been formally charged, it will be a matter of time.
The image of a ruthless strongman, weak and whimpering, does not suit Mr. Duterte – not now and not ever. This is a step further toward justice for those who were killed in the so-called war on drugs, for their bereaved families, and for the nation which endured years of terror and injustice under a government that was supposed to make them feel safe.
We will await the next phases of the trial and expect justice to be delivered in The Hague. May we be emboldened that justice prevails in the end, still.
