Philippines calls ICC's drug war probe 'threat to sovereignty', says won't cooperate

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr said on Tuesday said that the Philippine government will not cooperate with the International Criminal Court’s (ICC) investigation into a brutal anti-narcotics campaign, calling it a “threat to our sovereignty”. Reiterating his earlier position, Reuters quoted Marcos as telling reporters, “I consider it as a threat to our sovereignty. Therefore, the Philippine government will not lift a finger to help any investigation that the ICC conducts.” In July, the ICC dismissed Manila’s appeal and permitted the continuation of an investigation into the numerous killings during the ‘war on drugs’ led by former President Rodrigo Duterte, along with other suspected human rights abuses. Marcos stated that ICC investigators are welcome to visit as ordinary individuals, but the government will not provide assistance. These comments from Marcos came after his justice minister’s statement to Kyodo News last week, suggesting that the government might consider an ICC probe if legal procedures were observed. Duterte’s camp contested this stance, asserting its illegality. “Allowing the ICC to conduct its probe in our country, in brazen violation of the constitution, is an absolute surrender of our birthright as a sovereign nation,” Reuters quoted Salvador Panelo, Duterte’s former presidential spokesperson, as saying in a message. The Philippines officially withdrew from the international tribunal in 2019 after then President Duterte questioned its authority to investigate the campaign against illegal drugs that killed thousands of people. Police say they killed 6,200 dealers who resisted arrest during anti-drug operations during Duterte’s term. Many thousands more users and peddlers were gunned down during the crackdown, in what authorities said were vigilante killings. Rights groups and some victims accuse the police of systematic cover-ups and executions, which they deny. In November, Marcos said he was studying the Philippines’ return to the ICC’s fold, months after saying he would cut off contact with the tribunal. With inputs from agencies