ICC counsel for victims joins move to reject Philippines' appeal vs 'drug war' probe
MANILA, Philippines — The International Criminal Court Office of the Public Counsel for Victims has joined ICC Prosecutor Kharim Khan in calling for the dismissal of the Philippines’ appeal against the tribunal’s probe into “war on drugs” killings in the Philippines.
Principal counsel for the victims Paolina Massidda asked the Appeals Chamber to dismiss the Philippine government’s appeal and uphold the decision of the Pre-Trial Chamber to resume the investigation into the killings during the administration of former President Rodrigo Duterte, and by the Davao Death Squad.
The counsel, in a submission dated April 18, told the Appeals Chamber that a reversal of the PTC Decision may "[jeopardize] the victims’ rights to truth, justice and reparations."
Massidda stressed that the issues raised in the appeal “affect the general interests of victims.”
"In fact, depending on their resolution, victims may be denied the opportunity to uncover the truth, present their views and concerns throughout the proceedings, ensure that those responsible are held accountable, and ultimately claim reparation," the counsel continued.
Jurisdiction and cooperation
Massidda said the Philippine government, which has the burden of proof, failed to demonstrate that PTC committed any error of fact or law in the assailed decision.
The four grounds laid by the Philippine government in its appeal, centering on jurisdiction and the complementarity test, should also be dismissed, Massidda said as the PTC had already addressed these in its earlier decision.
Addressing the Philippines argument that the ICC may not exercise jurisdiction to a former State Party and is therefore not obligated to cooperate, the counsel asserted that this still “do not alter the fact that the Court retains jurisdiction over the present Situation, and as such are irrelevant.”
The Philippines had argued that the Court may not "indefinitely exercise its jurisdiction" to a former State Party.
Massidda pointed out that article 70(1)(b) of the Vienna Convention held that the withdrawal of the State from Statute does not affect the Court’s jurisdiction.
The counsel stressed: "If a State’s acceptance of the Court’s jurisdiction was to be determined ‘at the point in the time in which said jurisdiction is triggered’, a State Party could easily evade its responsibilities by notifying its withdrawal as soon as the Court turns its attention to crimes committed."
In the Philippines’ case, the withdrawal announcement was made a month after former ICC prosecutor Fatou Bensouda announced the opening of a preliminary examination. It took effect in March 2019, although the coverage of the ICC prosecutor’s investigation is from 2011 to March 2019, including deaths in Davao in the investigation.
"For the foregoing reasons, Counsel respectfully requests the Appeals Chamber to dismiss the Appeal in its entirety and confirm the Impugned Decision," Massidda added.
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