Duterte was surrendered to ICC based on Philippine law—Remulla
Rodrigo Duterte was surrendered to authorities based on a Philippine law, Department of Justice Sec. Boying Remulla said during a Senate hearing into the International Criminal Court's issuance of an arrest warrant against the former president.
During the March 20 Senate Committee on Foreign Relations hearing into Duterte's arrest led by Sen. Imee Marcos, Remulla cited the Republic Act No. 9851, or the Philippine Act on Crimes Against International Humanitarian Law, Genocide, and Other Crimes Against Humanity, as the basis for the government's move to surrender Duterte to authorities.
Its Section 17 states that, in the interest of justice, the "relevant Philippine authorities may dispense with the investigation or prosecution of a crime punishable under this Act if another court or international tribunal is already conducting the investigation or undertaking the prosecution of such crime."
"Instead, the authorities may surrender or extradite suspected or accused persons in the Philippines to the appropriate international court, if any, or to another State pursuant to the applicable extradition laws and treaties," it noted.
Remulla said they opted to surrender Duterte once he arrived from Hong Kong.
As stated in the warrant obtained by The Philippine STAR, Duterte was arrested on March 11 for murder, torture, and rape—which are part of the 15 forms of crimes against humanity under the Rome Statute—in connection with his administration's bloody war on drugs, which saw the execution of thousands of suspected drug peddlers, users, and small-time criminals.
They also found reasonable grounds to believe that he was individually responsible as an indirect co-perpetrator for the crime against humanity of murder, allegedly committed in the Philippines between November 2011 and March 2019.
Duterte arrived in The Hague in the Netherlands on March 12 to face the charges against him.
'Never had any contact' with the ICC
Over the hearing, Imee questioned the legality of Duterte's arrest and asked about the ICC's jurisdiction over the country, noting that Duterte withdrew from the international tribunal in 2018, which took effect the following year.
"I am perplexed," she told Remulla. "The Department of Foreign Affairs made it very clear that as we withdrew (from the ICC), we are no longer a state party to the treaty. And now you are saying that we can, nevertheless, fall under the ICC under the general rubric of international humanitarian law? So, it doesn’t matter whether you sign or do not sign a (treaty) or ratify or do not ratify."
Amid Imee's probing, Remulla pointed out that they did not assist the ICC—much less talk to it—in relation to its issuance of the arrest warrant.
Remulla noted that the Philippines isn't a member-state of the ICC anymore.
"Whatever relationship [we have] with the ICC is on an arms-length basis if we have to talk to them," he said. "But we have never spoken to them. We're very transparent about what to do and we have never had any contact with the ICC."
The secretary, however, noted that the ICC still runs after individuals—and not member-states—for alleged crimes. "We have to face the ICC," he noted.
According to Remulla, over 150 countries worldwide have adopted the international humanitarian law as a "customary law."
"We made a commitment to the United Nations," he said.
Moreover, he pointed out that Duterte's arrest warrant was issued by the International Criminal Police Organization on behalf of the ICC. He noted the country's long-standing commitment to Interpol.
The Philippines has been a member of Interpol since 1952.
In a press conference after Duterte's arrest, Bongbong reiterated the country's commitments to Interpol.
"If we don't do that, they will no longer help us with other cases involving Filipino fugitives abroad," he said. "This is what the international community expects of us as the leader of a democratic country that is part of the community of nations."
Diffusion notice
The Senate hearing also showed a diffusion notice to Interpol, in which the Philippines was shown to have coordinated with the organization in enforcing the arrest warrant against Duterte.
Anthony Alcantara, executive director of the Philippine Center on Transnational Crime which supervises Interpol-National Center Bureau-Manila, said the ICC's diffusion notice is classified as "red" and is tantamount to Interpol's red notice, which aims to “seek the location and arrest of persons wanted for prosecution or to serve a sentence.”
On its website, Interpol says a “wanted persons red diffusion" is a notice "circulated to arrest, detain, or restrict the movement of a convicted or accused person—are checked for compliance by the Notices and Diffusions Task Force."
In the diffusion notice shown by Imee, Duterte was tagged as a "wanted" person for crimes against humanity.
“Please arrest the subject of this diffusion. This diffusion is transmitted after prior consultations with the Government of the Philippines, who have agreed to comply with this request for arrest. This diffusion relates to the International Warrant of arrest (referenced in this Diffusion) which has also been formally transmitted to the Government of the Philippines,” the diffusion notice read.
“This request is to be treated as a formal request for provisional arrest, in conformity with national laws and/or the applicable bilateral and multilateral treaties,” it further read.
Imee noted that there's "prior consultation" between Interpol and the Philippine government.
“So it is not true that you recently knew about this," she said. "The notice was received at 3:04 a.m. on March 11, stating that there was a request ‘after prior consultation with the government of the Philippines,' who have agreed to comply with this request."
“This means that the government talked and agreed with the ICC, and that this is already a formal transmittal," she added. "This explains why there were thousands of police officers mobilized as early as March 10. This was not a sudden development."
Remulla and Department of Interior and Local Government Sec. Jonvic Remulla, his brother, denied Imee's claims.
DOJ's Remulla explained that the ICC's diffusion notice is a “form letter” with “careful word choices," like supposed coordination with the Philippine government before releasing it to Interpol.
DILG's Remulla, meanwhile, said he only knew about the ICC arrest warrant when NCB-Manila received the diffusion notice on March 11 at 3 a.m.
“That was the first knowledge of this administration about an ICC action," he said. "No one knew. I repeat, categorically, no one knew until 3 a.m. of March 11."
Año denies 'grand conspiracy' for Duterte's ICC arrest
National Security Adviser Eduardo Año dismissed claims that he was part of a "grand conspiracy" to have Duterte arrested.
"It is utterly unacceptable and unfair that my name is being dragged into an alleged grand conspiracy," he said. "I firmly deny any allegations of a grand conspiracy. In fact, the events on March 11 were spontaneous."
Año pointed out that his role in Duterte's arrest was just to "assess that the situation does not escalate into a national security concern."
“I’d like to state for the record that my role is limited to the mandate of my office," he said.
"I have no part in it," he added. "And may I also state for the record that I am not aware of any core group, nor am I a member of such group that allegedly planned and prepared for the arrest of former President Duterte."
Earlier, Sen. Bato Dela Rosa, Duterte's former police chief and one of his alleged co-perpetrators, expressed disappointment toward Año.
Dela Rosa noted that Año,"out of courtesy," could've informed Duterte and his allies, who were in Hong Kong before his arrest.
The senator also claimed hearing an unfounded rumor about a "traitor" in that Hong Kong group.
Duterte received soft and hard copies of ICC arrest warrant
Nicolas Torre III, chief of the Philippine National Police Criminal Investigation and Detection Group which conducted Duterte's arrest in partnership with Interpol, noted that Duterte received both soft and hard copies of the ICC arrest warrant.
As Imee questioned the soft copy version, Torre noted that it's acceptable. Nevertheless, they printed a hard copy at the behest of the Duterte camp.
“Right at the tube, [DOJ] Usec. Nicky Ty together with [Prosecutor General Richard Anthony] Fadullon, together with me, gave them the electronic copy through retired general [Alex Paul] Monteagudo,” Torre said.
“They really want a copy of the warrant, that is why a soft copy was given to them on the tube. A hard copy was printed and later on received by Atty. [Martin] Delgra at the 250th [Presidential Airlift Wing inside Villamor Air Base]," Torre said of Duterte's lawyer.
Alcantara said he showed Duterte the warrant on the plane at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport.
'Patently illegal' arrest
Vice President Sara Duterte, the former president's daughter who went to The Hague following his arrest, also joined the Senate hearing via Zoom.
Sara called the arrest "patently illegal" and constituted "extraordinary rendition."
"A Filipino citizen, a former president, was taken into custody without a valid warrant issued by a Philippine court, without due process and without any legal basis under our laws,” she said, adding that the ICC warrant was "baseless."
She also aired her grievances anew to Bongbong, her former UniTeam ally whom she and her supporters have accused of politicking and of orchestrating Duterte's arrest.
She claimed that the Marcos administration is using government resources to "demolish the opposition."
Sara also took a swipe at the Armed Forces of the Philippines, accusing them of standing "idly" while the PNP supposedly took over the Villamor Air Base. At the time, Sara wasn't allowed to enter its premises while the arrest was ongoing.
"Even more disturbing is the silence of the Armed Forces of the Philippines," she said. "Why did the AFP stand idly by when a former commander-in-chief was taken from a military base under questionable circumstances?"
The AFP has yet to comment on what Sara said, though in November, as the political rift between the Marcoses and the Dutertes kept on widening, the AFP pointed out that it's a non-partisan organization that's loyal to the flag and the Constitution. It also reiterated maintaining professionalism and adhering to the chain of command.
Duterte could be the first Asian former head of state to be indicted by the ICC.
His pre-trial hearing is on Sept. 23, 2025.
If the charges against him are confirmed, it could be months before the case eventually goes on trial, and years before a final judgment is rendered.
