AMSTERDAM (Reuters) – International Criminal Court judges on Wednesday approved a formal investigation into possible crimes against humanity allegedly committed under the leadership of Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte in the context of his “war on drugs.”
The ICC said in a statement that the judges had approved a request from prosecutors to begin the investigation of a possible murder as a crime against humanity.
The assessment of the material presented by prosecutors by the judges was that “the so-called“ war on drugs ”campaign“ cannot be seen as a legitimate law enforcement operation ”but rather a systematic attack on civilians.
Human rights groups accuse Duterte of inciting deadly violence and say police have massively murdered unarmed drug suspects as part of the campaign. Police deny it and Duterte says police only have orders to kill in self-defense. The Manila government could not be contacted immediately to react on Wednesday afternoon.
Philippine rights group Karapatan said the court’s comments “reaffirm the views of the victims and their families.”
“Duterte and his cohorts should be held accountable for these crimes,” he said following the ICC decision.
In a July speech, Duterte attacked the court and said he would continue his fight against drugs. “I have never denied it, and the ICC can record it: those who destroy my country, I will kill you,” he said.
Although the Philippines has withdrawn from membership in the ICC, it was a member between July 2016 and March 2019, a period covered by prospective research.
The judges said the relevant offenses appeared to have continued after that date, but that the court was limited to investigating those suspected of having occurred while the Philippines was a member.
(Report by Toby Sterling in Amsterdam and Karen Lema in Manila; Edited by Kevin Liffey)