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Jean Mangaluz - Philstar.com
March 20, 2025 | 6:14pm
MANILA, Philippines — Tensions ran high in the Senate as allies of former President Rodrigo Duterte questioned the legality of his arrest and transfer to the International Criminal Court (ICC).
Duterte’s allies in the Senate raised several legal arguments, including whether the ICC has jurisdiction over a Filipino citizen and whether the warrant was properly implemented.
The Remulla brothers—Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla and Interior Secretary Jonvic Remulla—explained the position of the government.
Sen. Imee Marcos, chair of the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, set the tone for the hearing by playing spliced footage of Duterte's arrest.
Jurisdiction
Imee, sister of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and an ally of the Dutertes, questioned why the government had seemingly shifted its stance on cooperating with the ICC.
She pointed out that earlier in his term, her brother had maintained that the Philippines would not cooperate with the ICC, citing old clips and quotes from him.
Justice Secretary Jesus Remulla reiterated the government’s stance, clarifying that the Philippines did not cooperate with the ICC but with Interpol.
This time, however, the justice secretary made a new distinction: while the ICC’s jurisdiction does not cover the Philippines as a state, it does extend to individuals wanted by the court.
“As non-member of the ICC, and as a state, the ICC has no jurisdiction over us as a country, but over the individuals who may have committed crimes against international humanitarian law,” Remulla said.
Imee challenged this argument, questioning how this aligns with treaties ratified by the Philippines. She said that the ICC operates under different procedural and administrative rules than the country’s legal system.
The government, however, insisted that surrendering Duterte to the ICC via Interpol was legally justified.
Imee also asked whether Duterte’s surrender was an admission that the Philippine justice system had failed.
Former Foreign Affairs Secretary-turned-Senator Alan Peter Cayetano questioned why these cases were not handled locally after Duterte left office.
Remulla acknowledged that families of extrajudicial killing (EJK) victims turned to the ICC because they could not find justice in the Philippines.
He explained that DOJ investigations under Marcos have been hampered by the lack of police records on suspicious killings.
The ICC became a recourse for the victims who did not find justice during Duterte’s time, the justice chief said.
Tensions escalated further when Interior Secretary Jonvic Remulla questioned why the Senate was not investigating these killings itself.
Arrest
Duterte’s arrest was also subject to scrutiny — not just in the Senate but in the Supreme Court.
Vice President Sara Duterte argued that a foreign court’s warrant must go through a Philippine court before implementation. She made a surprise appearance at the hearing via video call from The Hague.
This assertion was further supported by a legal expert who said that Duterte still had constitutional rights that should have been prioritized over international obligations.
“If the Constitution guarantees that if a person is to be expelled from the Philippine territory, by whatever means, a lawful order of the court is required,” lawyer Alexis Medina said.
Imee also raised concerns over the Interpol Red Notice, claiming none had been issued for Duterte.
However, Philippine Center on Transnational Crime Executive Director Anthony Alcantara clarified that while there was no Red Notice, there was a Red Diffusion.
According to Interpol’s website, both serve the same purpose.
The distinction between the Interpol Red Notice and a Red Diffusion is that the former is an alert to member countries to locate and arrest a suspect while the latter is a direct communication requesting arrest from one country to another.
Sen. Jinggoy Estrada questioned Philippine National Police-Criminal Investigation and Detection Group Chief Nicolas Torre about the arrest’s handling, particularly why Duterte was not allowed to meet Vice President Sara Duterte.
Torre justified this by noting that Duterte already had three lawyers present.
Further details on the arrest were not disclosed due to an ongoing Supreme Court case challenging the legality of Duterte’s transfer.
