While he won’t bar investigators of the International Criminal Court from entering the country, President Marcos said Tuesday his position that the ICC has no jurisdiction over the Philippines remains.
Despite a recent survey showing a majority of Filipinos wanted thecountry to rejoin the ICC, Mr. Marcos said there remains “questions of jurisdiction and sovereignty.”
“It opens a Pandora’s box. It’s still those – [and] I haven’t yet seen a sufficient answer for it. Until then, I do not recognize their jurisdiction in the Philippines,” he said.
“I cannot. That seems to be the only logical conclusion that could come from that situation,” the President added.
He said the ICC could produce as much evidence as they wanted but they would still have no jurisdiction in the country.
“It’s not about the evidence. It’s about the jurisdiction of the ICC in the Philippines. They can produce as much evidence as they want but they cannot act upon it in the Philippines,” Mr. Marcos said.
However, he said ICC probers would not be stopped from entering the Philippines as long as “they haven’t done anything illegal.”
“We are an open country. We are not a closed country,” he said.
A recent OCTA Research Survey showed at least 59 percent of Filipinos support the Philippines rejoining the ICC, with 55 percent also in favor of investigating allegations of crimes against humanity during the previous administration.
For his part, 1-RIDER party-list Rep. Ramon Gutierrez said the survey result reflected the people’s support for human rights and the rule of law.
Gutierrez and Manila Rep. Bienvenido Abante earlier filed a resolution urging the Executive Branch to extend its full cooperation with the ICC, which is investigating former President Rodrigo Duterte’s bloody anti-illegal drugs campaign that killed thousands of Filipinos.
“It just vindicates our resolution,” said Gutierrez, a member of the minority in the House of Representatives.
“This only means that the greater majority of our people are with us in this effort,” he said.