Families of victims of extrajudicial killings (EJKs) receive the cremated remains of their loved ones during the 12th "Daluyan Ng Paghilom" at the Sacred Heart Parish Shrine, in Quezon City, May 25, 2023. The six cremated remains, which were blessed and turned over to their immediate family, were part of the exhumed and re-autopsied bodies of the drug war victims. Jonathan Cellona, ABS-CBN News/File  

MANILA — The Department of Justice has yet to receive any information on a possible International Criminal Court (ICC) warrant of arrest against former President Rodrigo Duterte and other respondents involved in the ongoing investigation into the previous administration's war on drugs.

Retired Supreme Court Justice Antonio Carpio previously mentioned that the ICC might issue an arrest warrant in September.

"I think the day of reckoning is coming closer because what I’m hearing is that a warrant of arrest will be issued by the ICC, sometime in September,” Carpio said in an interview on political analyst Richard Heydarian’s vlog.

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However, Justice Undersecretary Raul Vasquez stated that they have not received  such information.

“We are not aware of that. None of our government agencies have been informed about anything,” Vasquez said.

The government has taken the position that it will not assist the ICC in its probe into the drug war but will not stop the court from getting in contact with personalities it may want to interview.

“The last action taken by the ICC was to request diplomatic permission from the DFA to conduct interviews, but this was ignored because we are no longer under their jurisdiction,” Vasquez said.

He said that if ICC personnel are coming to or are already in the Philippines, “we don’t know and it’s simply none of our business.”

He said that the Philippines is a “very robust and active democracy” where people are free to travel and to seek information. 

Vasquez mentioned that despite the Philippines' withdrawal from the ICC in 2019, the country still has obligations to the International Criminal Police Organization (Interpol).

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“And we have to understand Interpol processes – it is not an international police enforcement body. It is one that is composed of the different states whose law enforcement agencies cooperate and coordinate and share information and data with the idea of jointly and effectively combatting transnational crimes – terrorism, terrorism financing, et cetera,” he said.

However, Vasquez noted that any potential issuance of a red notice or arrest request by Interpol will be carefully studied.

“Kung sinuman ang aarestuhin, kung aarestuhin man at kung gagawin mang aresto iyan, ayon sa batas natin – iyan po ay aaralin, susuriin nang mainam kasi ang daming nuances po iyan eh. Mayroon din constitutional decision, it’s a decision ng Supreme Court,” said Vasquez.

(Whoever will be arrested — if they are even to be arrested under our laws — that will be studied well because there are many nuances. It could also be a constitutional decision, a decision by the Supreme Court)

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