The Philippines Marcos/Duterte regime’s vitriol toward the International Criminal Court is backed by the United States’ Trump and Biden White House which has already given a de facto pass to Manila’s bid for impunity for the murder of tens of thousands of its citizens.
The USA sees the Philippines as an ideal launch platform for war with China which a four-star U.S. General says will come in a year or two. The Marcos/Duterte government has already quietly given the USA a nod for five more military bases in the Philippines bringing the total to ten. (See sidebar below.)
I want these people killed.
“Jesus Crispin Remulla (current Justice Minister appointed by Marcos/Duterte regime) had the audacity to say the ICC should not impose on the Philippines, which is no longer a signatory to the international tribunal, but it was a signatory at the material time. Since then, Marcos, doing Duterte’s bidding, has refused Senators’ requests to resume membership in the ICC,” says a Filipino lawyer who says she is terrified of being drawn into the matter therefore has asked for anonymity.
“They insult us,” Remulla told a media briefing after the IC Court granted its prosecutor Mr. Karim Khan KC from the United Kingdom and his Deputies Mr. Mame Mandiaye Niang (Senegal) and Nazhat Shameem Khan (Fiji) their request to reopen an investigation into the massive numbers of extrajudicial killings during former Rodrigo Duterte’s term in office.
The Philippines Duterte government had asked the International Criminal Court under ‘the rules’ to stay the investigation into mass murders and crimes against humanity in the Philippines because, officials said, the Philippines would carry out its own investigation and essentially clean up its act.
But this week the International Criminal Court said, “Various domestic initiatives and proceedings, assessed collectively, do not amount to tangible, concrete and progressive investigative steps in a way that would sufficiently mirror the Court’s investigation,” the International Criminal Court said Friday.
The Court’s 42-page ruling can be read here.
Video: “A requiem for precious souls lost to Duterte Murders.” from The RINJ Foundation on Vimeo.
Editorial note: “Philippines Vice President Leni Robredo, at great personal risk and eventual cost to her career, safety and security, bravely warned the world in 2016 of the Duterte murders. So too did civil society, in more detail. Why didn’t anyone listen or care? Since then, political opponents, journalists, human rights defenders and poor people who walked with a limp or a lisp have been accused of being either communists, drug users or terrorists and murdered in cold blood. Many were infants and children, killed to draw out the target. Killers I have met were people paid well, given a gun, and a motorcycle and regularly assigned lists.”—Micheal John
Video: Shero Leni Robredo, February 2017.
Robredo: Philippines Duterte tramples VP Robredo. Implies he wants her dead.
From the Ruling of the International Criminal Court
The IC Court’s 42-page ruling can be read here.
In support of the prosecutor’s request of 24 June 2022 to resume the process, the prosecution provided four sets of overarching submissions, focusing both on the nature and the scope and subject matter of the activities relied upon by the Philippines when it requested a stay of the proceedings:
i) administrative or non-criminal proceedings, as cited in the Deferral Request, are not investigative activities and do not justify deferral;
ii) the Philippines has not identified any investigations into a large set of events, type of crimes covered by the Chamber’s authorisation to investigate, in particular alleged events in Davao between 2011 and 2016, crimes other than murder, killings outside official police operations, into the alleged policy element;
iii) the cases referred to the Philippines’ National Bureau of Investigation do not support deferral of the Court’s investigation; and
iv) the cases collated from the dockets of the Philippines’ national and regional prosecution offices also do not support deferral of the Court’s investigation.
The International Criminal Court Releases Statement
“Today, 26 January 2023, Pre-Trial Chamber I of the International Criminal Court (“ICC” or “Court”) granted the Prosecutor’s request to resume investigation into the Situation of the Republic of the Philippines (“the Philippines”). Following a careful analysis of the materials provided by the Philippines, the Chamber is not satisfied that the Philippines is undertaking relevant investigations that would warrant a deferral of the Court’s investigations on the basis of the complementarity principle.
“After having examined the submissions and materials of the Philippines Government, and of the ICC Prosecutor, as well as the victims’ observations, the Chamber concluded that the various domestic initiatives and proceedings, assessed collectively, do not amount to tangible, concrete and progressive investigative steps in a way that would sufficiently mirror the Court’s investigation.” —ICC Pre-Trial Chamber I authorises Prosecutor to resume investigation in the Philippines
Read: Video of actual murders. ICC to issue warrants on Philippines EJKs – (rinj.press)
The Philippines is important to the U.S. as a launch platform from its ten bases in PH for war with China, now forecasted to take place in 2025 by U.S. Four Star General Mike Minihan
Sidebar courtesy the Aircraft Carrier crew of USS Nimitz (CVN 68)
The aircraft carrier USS Nimitz (CVN 68) transits through the South China Sea. Nimitz is in U.S. 7th Fleet conducting routine operations. 7th Fleet is the U.S. Navy’s largest forward-deployed numbered fleet, and routinely interacts and operates with Allies and partners in preserving a free and open Indo-Pacific region. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Hannah Kantner)
The Nimitz Carrier Strike Group (NIMCSG) began operating in the South China Sea on 12 January for the first time during the group’s 2022-2023 deployment.
While in the South China Sea, the strike group is conducting maritime strike training, anti-submarine operations, integrated multi-domain and joint training between surface and air elements, and flight operations with fixed and rotary wing aircraft. Carrier operations in the South China Sea are part of the U.S. Navy’s routine operations in the Indo-Pacific.
“The Nimitz Carrier Strike Group has the capability to deliver integrated lethal and non-lethal effects from space to undersea, across every axis, and every domain,” said Rear Adm. Christopher Sweeney, commander, Carrier Strike Group (CSG) 11. “Our Sailors’ tenacity and warfighting prowess are unmatched and a testimony to our country’s determination to work alongside our Allies and partners to maintain free and open seas.”
The CSG 11 staff is embarked on the aircraft carrier USS Nimitz (CVN 68). The Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser USS Bunker Hill (CG 52), Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyers USS Decatur (DDG 73), USS Chung Hoon (DDG 93), USS Wayne E Meyer (DDG 108), the squadrons and staff of Carrier Air Wing Seventeen (CVW 17), and the staffs of Destroyer Squadron Nine (DESRON 9) are attached to the strike group and provide unparalleled firepower across all domains – air, sea and land.
The squadrons that make up CVW 17 are the “Fighting Redcocks” of Strike Fighter Squadron 22 (VFA 22), “Mighty Shrikes” of Strike Fighter Squadron 94 (VFA 94), “Kestrels” of Strike Fighter Squadron 137 (VFA 137), “Blue Diamonds” of Strike Fighter Squadron 146 (VFA 146), “Cougars” of Electronic Attack Squadron 139 (VAQ 139), “Sun Kings” of Carrier Airborne Early Warning Squadron 116 (VAW 116), “Battlecats” of Helicopter Maritime Strike Squadron 73 (HSM 73) and the “Screamin’ Indians” of Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron 6 (HSC 6).
The strike group remains committed to protecting the rights, freedoms, and lawful uses of the sea, and upholding the rules-based international order alongside Allies and partners. CSG 11 demonstrates the ability to deliver overwhelming maritime force if called upon.
The Nimitz Carrier Strike Group is currently underway in 7th Fleet conducting routine operations. 7th Fleet is the U.S. Navy‘s largest forward-deployed numbered fleet, and routinely interacts and operates with Allies and partners in preserving a free and open Indo-Pacific region.
