ADVERTISEMENT
Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider National devider Gov't ready amid rumors of ICC arrest warrant vs ex-pres Duterte—PCO

Gov't ready amid rumors of ICC arrest warrant vs ex-pres Duterte—PCO

Published Mar 9, 2025 06:00 am

At A Glance

  • In a statement, Palace Press Officer and Communications Undersecretary Claire Castro acknowledged the rumor and said the country would cooperate through Interpol.

Malacañang said the government is prepared for any possible scenario amid rumors that the International Criminal Court (ICC) has issued an arrest warrant against former president Rodrigo Duterte.

Former president Rodrigo Duterte (Santi San Juan)
Former president Rodrigo Duterte (Santi San Juan/MANILA BULLETIN)

Communications Secretary Jay Ruiz said this following speculations that the former president had left the country to evade a supposed impending arrest.

"We’ve heard that an arrest warrant has been issued by the International Criminal Court against former president Rodrigo Duterte for crimes against humanity," Ruiz said in a statement on Sunday, March 9.

"The government is prepared for any eventuality," he added.

In a statement, Palace Press Officer and Communications Undersecretary Claire Castro acknowledged the rumor and said the country would cooperate through Interpol.

"No confirmation of issuance of a warrant of arrest from the Palace," she said on Sunday.

"But as what ES Bersamin (Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin) and SOJ (Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla) said before, if Interpol will ask for the necessary assistance from the government, it is obliged to follow," she added.

If an arrest warrant against Duterte had indeed been issued, Castro, in an interview with TeleRadyo Serbisyo, said a hold departure order would follow.

However, it was reported that the former president had already left the country for Hong Kong on Friday to campaign for his senatorial candidates.

The ICC has been investigating Duterte and other individuals for the supposed extrajudicial killings and human rights violations committed during his bloody drug war.

During his term, the Philippines withdrew from the Rome Statute that established the ICC.

President Marcos maintained Duterte's position that the ICC has no jurisdiction over the Philippines following its withdrawal. However, Malacañang said the country will only cooperate if the ICC courses its request through Interpol.

No arrest warrant -- OSG

The Office of the Solicitor General (OSG) said yesterday it has not received a notice from the ICC on an arrest warrant against any Filipino.

“We have not received any such notice from the ICC,” said Solicitor General Menardo I. Guevarra.

Guevarra pointed this out following a news report that the ICC has issued an arrest warrant against former president Duterte who is facing charges of crimes against humanity over the killings during the illegal drugs war of his administration.

The OSG represented the Philippines in asking the ICC to stop its investigation into the drugs war.

The administration of President Marcos has maintained that the Philippine government will not cooperate in the ICC’s investigation.

The OSG had argued that the ICC no longer had jurisdiction over the country after the Philippines, upon the instruction of Duterte, withdrew in 2018 as a signatory to the Rome Statute that created the international tribunal. The withdrawal became effective in 2019.

Earlier this year, Guevarra said, though the government will not cooperate, it cannot not stop the ICC from conducting its investigation. (With a report from Jeffrey Damicog)

Related Tags

claire castro International Criminal Court (ICC) Jay Ruiz President Duterte arrest warrant
ADVERTISEMENT
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1561_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1562_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.most-popular .layout-ratio{ padding-bottom: 79.13%; } @media (min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1024px) { .widget-title { font-size: 15px !important; } }

{{ articles_filter_1563_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}

{{ articles_filter_1564_widget.title }}

{{ item.title }}
.mb-article-details { position: relative; } .mb-article-details .article-body-preview, .mb-article-details .article-body-summary{ font-size: 17px; line-height: 30px; font-family: "Libre Caslon Text", serif; color: #000; } .mb-article-details .article-body-preview iframe , .mb-article-details .article-body-summary iframe{ width: 100%; margin: auto; } .read-more-background { background: linear-gradient(180deg, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000 / 0) 13.75%, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000 / 0.8) 30.79%, color(display-p3 1.000 1.000 1.000) 72.5%); position: absolute; height: 200px; width: 100%; bottom: 0; display: flex; justify-content: center; align-items: center; padding: 0; } .read-more-background a{ color: #000; } .read-more-btn { padding: 17px 45px; font-family: Inter; font-weight: 700; font-size: 18px; line-height: 16px; text-align: center; vertical-align: middle; border: 1px solid black; background-color: white; } .hidden { display: none; }
function initializeAllSwipers() { // Get all hidden inputs with cms_article_id document.querySelectorAll('[id^="cms_article_id_"]').forEach(function (input) { const cmsArticleId = input.value; const articleSelector = '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .body_images'; const swiperElement = document.querySelector(articleSelector); if (swiperElement && !swiperElement.classList.contains('swiper-initialized')) { new Swiper(articleSelector, { loop: true, pagination: false, navigation: { nextEl: '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .swiper-button-next', prevEl: '#article-' + cmsArticleId + ' .swiper-button-prev', }, }); } }); } setTimeout(initializeAllSwipers, 3000); const intersectionObserver = new IntersectionObserver( (entries) => { entries.forEach((entry) => { if (entry.isIntersecting) { const newUrl = entry.target.getAttribute("data-url"); if (newUrl) { history.pushState(null, null, newUrl); let article = entry.target; // Extract metadata const author = article.querySelector('.author-section').textContent.replace('By', '').trim(); const section = article.querySelector('.section-info ').textContent.replace(' ', ' '); const title = article.querySelector('.article-title h1').textContent; // Parse URL for Chartbeat path format const parsedUrl = new URL(newUrl, window.location.origin); const cleanUrl = parsedUrl.host + parsedUrl.pathname; // Update Chartbeat configuration if (typeof window._sf_async_config !== 'undefined') { window._sf_async_config.path = cleanUrl; window._sf_async_config.sections = section; window._sf_async_config.authors = author; } // Track virtual page view with Chartbeat if (typeof pSUPERFLY !== 'undefined' && typeof pSUPERFLY.virtualPage === 'function') { try { pSUPERFLY.virtualPage({ path: cleanUrl, title: title, sections: section, authors: author }); } catch (error) { console.error('ping error', error); } } // Optional: Update document title if (title && title !== document.title) { document.title = title; } } } }); }, { threshold: 0.1 } ); function showArticleBody(button) { const article = button.closest("article"); const summary = article.querySelector(".article-body-summary"); const body = article.querySelector(".article-body-preview"); const readMoreSection = article.querySelector(".read-more-background"); // Hide summary and read-more section summary.style.display = "none"; readMoreSection.style.display = "none"; // Show the full article body body.classList.remove("hidden"); } document.addEventListener("DOMContentLoaded", () => { let loadCount = 0; // Track how many times articles are loaded const offset = [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10]; // Offset values const currentUrl = window.location.pathname.substring(1); let isLoading = false; // Prevent multiple calls if (!currentUrl) { console.log("Current URL is invalid."); return; } const sentinel = document.getElementById("load-more-sentinel"); if (!sentinel) { console.log("Sentinel element not found."); return; } function isSentinelVisible() { const rect = sentinel.getBoundingClientRect(); return ( rect.top < window.innerHeight && rect.bottom >= 0 ); } function onScroll() { if (isLoading) return; if (isSentinelVisible()) { if (loadCount >= offset.length) { console.log("Maximum load attempts reached."); window.removeEventListener("scroll", onScroll); return; } isLoading = true; const currentOffset = offset[loadCount]; window.loadMoreItems().then(() => { let article = document.querySelector('#widget_1690 > div:nth-last-of-type(2) article'); intersectionObserver.observe(article) loadCount++; }).catch(error => { console.error("Error loading more items:", error); }).finally(() => { isLoading = false; }); } } window.addEventListener("scroll", onScroll); });
Join Our Newsletters

Sign up by email to receive news.

© 2025 Manila Bulletin The Nation's Leading Newspaper. All Rights Reserved.