‘That’s what she believes’ — Sotto on ICC prosecutor’s findings on PH drug war

Senate President Vicente Sotto III on Tuesday, Dec. 15, shrugged off the International Criminal Court’s (ICC) initial findings on President Duterte’s war on drugs.

ICC Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda said she was satisfied that there is a “reasonable basis” to believe that crimes against humanity, such as murder, torture, physical injury and mental harm, and other “inhumane acts,” were committed in relation to Duterte’s campaign against illegal drugs.

“That’s what she believes. Some believe otherwise,” Sotto said when asked to comment on Bensouda’s report on Viber.

The Senate chief, a staunch anti-illegal drug advocate, has been supportive of the Duterte administration’s war on drugs, although maintaining that drug abuse prevention and rehabilitation of drug dependents should be prioritized to reduce the demand for prohibited and dangerous substances.

Last January, he expressed disbelief that human rights violations were committed under Duterte’s anti-drug campaign.

“Alam ninyo ‘yong balita, totoo man o hindi, sabihin mong paulit-ulit, ang paniwala ng tao nagiging totoo na, eh (You know, whether or not news is true, as long as it is being repeated, people become convinced that it is true),” Sotto told reporters after a Social Weather Stations December 2019 survey found that 76 percent of Filipinos saw “many” human rights violations from the drug war.

Opposition senator and Duterte critic Francis Pangilinan, for his part, said he was not surprised with Bensouda’s findings, but was concerned with the delay in its preliminary examination.

“It doesn’t come as a surprise. It is a bit troubling though that it took them over four years of daily killings to find ‘reasonable basis.’ Perhaps if they acted sooner, thousands of lives could have been saved,” Pangilinan lamented.

The ICC started on Feb. 8, 2018 its preliminary examination on reported extrajudicial killings allegedly committed by law enforcers during Duterte’s anti-drug campaign.

This triggered the Philippines, upon Duterte’s orders, to withdraw from the Rome Statute, the treaty that created the ICC.

The examination covered the period between July 1, 2016 until March 16, 2019, a day before the withdrawal took effect March 17, 2019.

In her report released Tuesday, Bensouda said she will decide by mid-next year whether or not to open a formal investigation on the government’s anti-narcotics campaign.