The government would not stop former president Rodrigo Duterte if he chooses to surrender to the International Criminal Court (ICC), Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin said Wednesday, Nov. 13.
“If the former President desires to surrender himself to the jurisdiction of the ICC, the government will neither object to it nor move to block the fulfillment of his desire,” Bersamin said in a statement.
However, Bersamin said that local authorities would consider cooperating with the Interpol if the ICC requests the assistance of the international anti-crime body.
“But if the ICC refers the process to the Interpol, which may then transmit a red notice to the Philippine authorities, the government will feel obliged to consider the red notice as a request to be honored, in which case the domestic law enforcement agencies shall be bound to accord full cooperation to the Interpol pursuant to established protocols,” he added.
Duterte has been invited by lawmakers to participate as a resource speaker in the House inquiry into the alleged extrajudicial killings that occurred during his administration’s war on drugs.IMT
