Roque: ICC members welcome as tourists

MANILA, Philippines — Members of the International Criminal Court (ICC) are welcome to the Philippines as long as they won’t investigate human rights violations, a Palace official said yesterday.

“They can come as tourists. There’s no ban. Yung bawal dito yung (What is prohibited is) usurpation, yun yung krimen (that’s the crime),” said presidential spokesman Harry Roque as he lectured on the “complementarity principle under the ICC.”

Roque said local courts are functioning so there is no reason for the ICC to investigate the President.

“Are you going to say we don’t have functioning courts? Lahat ng Filipinos, mainsulto naman kayo (All Filipinos, you should be insulted). That’s the reason why there’s ICC, in places where there are no institutions working,” he said. 

Duterte had notified the ICC that the Philippines was withdrawing from the body after it started a preliminary examination on charges filed by lawyer Jude Sabio over alleged extrajudicial killings in the country.

Roque reiterated that ICC prosecutor Fatou Bensouda was wrong when she discussed the examination of the complaint filed against Duterte.

“She was dead wrong and she knows it,” he said.

Roque noted that the Assembly of State Parties is now appealing to the Philippines not to withdraw from the ICC.

“We are the foremost advocate of the ICC in Asia. We’re the Philippines leading Asia, forget the universal ratification in Asia, no other Asian state will join the ICC,” Roque said.