God knows Hudas not pay: The betrayal and kidnapping of Rodrigo Duterte

The saddest thing about betrayal, as they say, is that it never comes from your enemies. But there will be a day of reckoning, for the worst places in hell are reserved for traitors. The betrayal and kidnapping of Rodrigo Duterte is now an international issue with millions of Filipinos all around the world expressing their disgust through protest rallies.

The rushed execution of PRRD’s unlawful arrest last March 11 – a betrayal from his own government – came like a thief in the night. President Duterte was an easy target because Marcos Jr., together with his cabal, was very much willing to sell the sovereignty of the Philippines for the sake of obliterating the Dutertes in the political landscape.

As a member of the International Criminal Court (ICC) roster of counsels since 2004, I have consistently argued that the ICC lost its authority to probe or prosecute individuals involved in the war on drugs campaign.

The Philippines deposited a notice of withdrawal on March 17, 2018. It became official on March 17, 2019. The Court Prosecutor failed to trigger the Court’s jurisdiction before our withdrawal became effective on March 17, 2019.

As contended by two Appellate Chamber judges, the Prosecutor can no longer open a preliminary investigation once the State’s withdrawal officially took effect.

It was only in 2021, or two years after we officially left the Court, that the PTC approved the commencement of a preliminary investigation.

PBBM, who went missing during the entire March 11 incident and only resurfaced after the chartered plane whisked PRRD out of the Philippines, could not admit his role in the kidnapping of PRRD and simply washed his hands, explaining that the government felt obliged to consider the request of the ICC since the process was referred to the Interpol. God knows Hudas not pay!

Consider this: the ICC issued an arrest warrant against Russian President Vladimir Putin and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for war crimes. Both leaders have not been arrested. President Duterte, on the other hand, was arrested for crimes against humanity. Did the former president commit genocide, ethnic persecution, a systemic attack on civilians? Anyway, Marcos Jr. permitted the arrest. It was a choice he and his cabal made.

Interpol cannot serve arrest warrants or make arrests anywhere, including the Philippines. It cannot compel the law enforcers in any country to arrest someone included in the Red Notice (fugitives wanted for prosecution or imprisonment). The fact that Marcos Jr. chose to comply means this was a political decision, and not a legal obligation.

While other countries fight tooth and nail to protect their citizens from foreign courts, the Philippines under Marcos Jr. handed over a Filipino, a former president at that, to a foreign tribunal. What happened to those yakking about national sovereignty in the West Philippine Sea? We never lost an inch of our territory under the Duterte administration but our country has lost its dignity under the Marcos administration.

As the lawyer of transgender Jennifer Laude, I recall the US government exercised its power to bring convicted soldier Lance Corporal Joseph Pemberton to America. The opposite of what Marcos Jr. did. No foreign tribunal should override a nation’s sovereignty and legal processes.

One of the most important aspects of the ICC arrest process is compliance with Article 59 of the Rome Statute, which states that “the person arrested shall have the right to apply to the competent authority in the custodial State for interim release pending surrender.” In the March 11 incident, the competent authority is the Regional Trial Court, with the Philippines acting as the custodial state. But what happened? The former president was forcibly taken directly to The Hague without undergoing required legal procedures. PRRD’s arrest, with its legal shortcuts, is a blatant violation of ICC rules.

Knowing that the Marcos Jr. administration recklessly committed procedural violation in the arrest of PRRD, Palace Undersecretary Claire Castro tried to distort facts, falsely claiming that the Filipino leader has to face a Dutch court to determine if the process of the arrest was proper. Patawa!

President Duterte faced his fate with great courage. He could have avoided arrest but he chose to return to his homeland. He surrendered without resistance to avoid bloodshed and made the ultimate sacrifice with no drama. Truly, a genuine leader – not just in words but in action.

People may be divided by PRRD’s controversial policies as chief executive but the present generation of Filipinos will never forget the ungrateful Marcos Jr. who stabbed in the back the Philippines’ most beloved leader who, incidentally, happened to restore the dignity of president Marcos Sr. with a proper burial. PBBM sent PRRD to The Hague to rot in detention. At least, Marcos Sr., for all his faults, had the decency not to persecute VP Salvador Laurel out of gratitude for the elder president Jose P. Laurel, who saved Marcos Sr. from jail. Read history and learn, folks.

The illegal arrest of PRRD now elevated him to the pantheon of heroes and legends in the likes of Andres Bonifacio and Antonio Luna, patriots who were betrayed by their quisling countrymen. One ex-Duterte Cabinet member even wrote in the Salamat PRRD book that working with PRRD has been the highlight of his career as a public servant.

On March 28, Rodrigo Duterte will turn 80, let us honor the man and let our voices be heard. Bring PRRD home.