Philippines Won’t Interfere with Interpol’s Duties Once ICC Orders Investigation – DOJ
August 13, 2024
According to the Department of Justice (DOJ) Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla, the Philippine government will not impede any of Interpol’s obligations once the International Criminal Court (ICC) issues an arrest warrant for certain individuals in the country linked to the drug war case. Secretary Remulla clarified that while the Philippines is no longer part of the ICC, the country is still a member of the international criminal police organization.
Meanwhile, Solicitor General Menardo Gueverra reiterated that the government cannot prohibit the ICC from interviewing persons of interests in the case.
“If we block them, we might face repercussions…. We will study the possibilities or the indications of dealing with Interpol on this matter. But we are not in the business of blocking the Interpol’s job, which is to fight international crime,”
“That is the future issue at hand now. If they issue a warrant of arrest, it’s the Interpol’s job to serve it. And we have an obligation to the Interpol.”
–Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla, DOJ Secretary
This statement from the DOJ comes after Former Senator Antonio Trillanes IV announced that the ICC has requested Interpol to issue a blue notice alert against five former Philippine National Police (PNP) officials under suspicion for alleged crimes during the Duterte Administration’s war on drugs, including:
- Senator Bato Dela Rosa
- Oscar Albayalde (Former Chief of Police)
- Romero Caramat Jr., (Former Chief of the PNP Criminal Investigation and Detection Group)
- Edilberto Leonardo (Former Commissioner of the National Police Commission)
- Eleazar Mata (Former PNP chief Intelligence Officer)
Secretary Remulla acknowledged the ICC request to Interpol, stating that the DOJ was informed through the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA).
The five PNP suspects were initially revealed by the former senator in an X (formerly twitter) post where he shared a four-page document from the ICC. The document named the former PNP officials as “suspects under Article 55(2) of the Rome Statute.”
“Along with providing this document to the Philippine government, the ICC also made a request to Interpol to include these five individuals in the ‘blue notice’,”
Antonio Trillanes, Former Senator
Dela Rosa: DOJ Statement “Quite alarming”
In response to Secretary Remulla’s and Solicitor General Guevarra’s statement regarding the ICC investigation, Senator Ronald ‘Bato’ Dela Rosa called it “alarming” and emphasized the President’s recent statement, which reiterated that the Philippines will not serve any arrest warrant against former President Rodrigo Duterte.
“Logically, with the new administration of President Bongbong Marcos giving importance to our national sovereignty, and with the President fulfilling his mandate to protect the people on all fronts, we can say that we have maintained the non-joining of the Philippines to the ICC,”
–Ronald ‘Bato’ Dela Rosa, Philippine Senator
