China denies receiving asylum request from Duterte
MANILA, Philippines — Former President Rodrigo Duterte did not request asylum in China prior to his arrest by the International Criminal Court, the Chinese foreign ministry said on Monday, March 24.
"We have never received the so-called application for asylum to the Chinese government from former president Rodrigo Duterte or his family," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun told reporters during a press conference.
This comes after a March 20 report by GMA 7 that cited an anonymous source claiming Duterte had sought asylum in China but was rejected, prompting his return to the Philippines where he was subsequently arrested.
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GMA 7's source said that when Duterte traveled to Hong Kong on March 7, the ICC had already issued the warrant for his arrest. The source said four Philippine National Police agents monitored Duterte in Hong Kong.
Duterte was then forced to return to the Philippines after China allegedly rejected his request for asylum, according to GMA 7. Six Hong Kong police officers reportedly escorted him to ensure he boarded his flight back to the Philippines.
Guo denied the alleged asylum request and called on media organizations to exercise caution with unverified information.
"We hope people from the media can be careful about the so-called 'information from sources' and do not easily believe what they hear," Guo said.
The Chinese government has consistently maintained that Duterte's visit to Hong Kong was simply "a private vacation trip," as the Commissioner's Office of China's Foreign Ministry in Hong Kong earlier stated.
Vice President Sara Duterte, the former president's daughter, also earlier denied that her father met with Chinese officials during their Hong Kong trip. She told reporters hours before her father's transfer to The Hague that the former president had "willingly" decided to return to the Philippines with the expectation of surrendering to local authorities.
Duterte was arrested on March 11 at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport after returning from Hong Kong. The arrest followed the issuance of a warrant by the ICC for alleged crimes against humanity related to his brutal anti-illegal drugs campaign.
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China is not a member of the ICC and was one of only seven states that voted against the adoption of the Rome Statute in 1998, which established the court.
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