While the Commission on Human Rights (CHR) respects the prerogative of President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. not to rejoin the International Criminal Court (ICC), Executive Director Jacqueline Ann de Guia said the decision is "unfortunate" when viewed from a human rights perspective.
In a statement, De Guia said that there are calls both from domestic and international fronts for truth and accountability in the deaths during the previous administration's campaign against illegal drugs.
"Being part of the ICC would have also been a strong mark of the government's commitment in ensuring that there will always be a remedy for human rights violations and in the protection of present and future generations of Filipinos," she said.
"Human rights, as well as the pursuit of truth and justice, will continue to be an international concern, as evidenced by the growing attention on current humanitarian crises, such as the Russian aggression against Ukraine," she added.
The Philippines’ membership in the ICC, with 108 member countries, was withdrawn in 2018 by then President Rodrigo Duterte.
De Guia recalled that the Office of the Prosecutor at the ICC, led by Fatou Bensouda, reported in 2020 that there is a "reasonable basis to believe" that crimes against humanity were committed by law enforcement officials as they carried out the government's campaign against illegal drugs. These acts include murder, torture, and infliction of serious physical injury and mental harm as other inhumane acts.
She also cited that since the preliminary investigation of the ICC on the human rights violations committed amidst the Philippines' war against illegal drugs will take at least five to eight years, the CHR is hoping that the government will change and take accountability for any transgressions made.
She said that based on data from the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA), the death toll in the war against illegal drugs has reached 6,248 as of last April 30. There were 341,494 suspects arrested in 236,620 anti-illegal drug operations from July 1, 2016 to April 30, 2022.
From that number, 15,096 were considered as high-value targets, including 402 elected officials, she added.