Government attorneys in the Philippines have asked the nation’s highest court to deny a request from a fugitive senator seeking to avoid arrest on war crimes allegations connected to his involvement in a deadly anti-drug campaign.
The senator, Ronald dela Rosa, previously served as the country’s top police official and supervised former President Rodrigo Duterte’s drug enforcement operations. He petitioned the Supreme Court to prevent officials from detaining him and turning him over to the International Criminal Court.
Both dela Rosa and Duterte face identical accusations related to crimes against humanity, with Duterte expected to be the first former Asian leader to face trial in The Hague. Both men have rejected the allegations against them.
The senator’s legal argument centers on his claim that the ICC lost authority over the Philippines when the country left the Rome Statute in 2019.
However, the Office of the Solicitor General (OSG) contended that Philippine officials can execute the ICC warrant through domestic legislation, Republic Act 9851, which permits authorities to hand over individuals accused of serious international crimes to global courts for trial.
The office stated that dela Rosa cannot require a separate Philippine court determination of adequate grounds for his arrest since the ICC has already issued its warrant, emphasizing that the nation “will never become a sanctuary for impunity.”
According to the OSG, dela Rosa lacks standing for relief because his “actions show that he comes to court with unclean hands.”
“His flight, coupled with the fact that he had previously gone into hiding, is not merely incidental but is a deliberate act to avoid accountability. His conduct places him squarely within the definition of a fugitive from justice,” the OSG stated in documents submitted on Saturday and released to media on Sunday.
The senator avoided capture on Monday after receiving protection from the Senate, whose new leader he helped elect by emerging from months of absence to provide a crucial vote for Alan Peter Cayetano, a strong supporter of the Duterte family.
International court officials revealed an arrest warrant for dela Rosa on Monday that was originally dated in November. While the senator had been sheltering in the Senate building, he departed before sunrise on Thursday in what his spouse described as an “escape.” His present location remains unknown.
“To once more extend exceptional privileges to a petitioner who now seeks relief while evading lawful process sends a chilling message — not only to the victims of the drug war, but to all who look to the law for justice: that its protections are strongest for the powerful, and weakest for those who are now dead,” the OSG stated.
