FORMER chief presidential legal counsel, Atty. Salvador Panelo, slammed on Tuesday, March 11, 2025, the “unlawful arrest” of former President Rodrigo Duterte on the basis of the warrant issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC).
In a statement, Panelo said Duterte was deprived of legal representation at the time of his arrest when the Philippine National Police did not allow his lawyers to meet him upon his arrival at the airport.
“The PNP could not have a hard copy (of) the warrant (of) arrest. By not allowing one of his lawyers to meet him, the arresting [officer] could avoid being asked if they have the hard copy of the arrest warrant,” he said.
“It is an illegal arrest because the ICC arrest warrant comes from a spurious source, the ICC, which has no jurisdiction over the Philippines,” he added.
Panelo said the arresting officers may be held criminally liable over Duterte’s unlawful arrest.
Duterte was arrested upon his arrival at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport Terminal 3 on Tuesday morning from Hong Kong.
The Presidential Communications Office said the International Criminal Police Organization Manila (Interpol) received the copy of the arrest warrant issued by the ICC against Duterte on Tuesday dawn, March 11, 2025.
Duterte, accompanied by his wife Honeylet and daughter Veronica, was brought to the VIP lounge at the Villamor Airbase.
In a social media post, Veronica cried for illegal detention, noting the failure of law enforcement officers to present an arrest warrant against the former President.
Duterte said he was not aware of the legal basis of his detention.
“Show to me now the legal basis of my being here. Apparently, I was brought here not of my own volition…so you have to answer now for the deprivation of liberty,” he said.
Duterte’s former executive secretary Salvador Medialdea insisted that the Philippines is no longer a member state of the ICC.
The ICC launched an investigation on drug killings under Duterte from November 1, 2011, when he was still mayor of Davao City, to March 16, 2019, over possible crimes against humanity. Duterte withdrew the Philippines in 2019 from the Rome Statute in a move human rights activists say was aimed at escaping accountability over the killings.
In the arrest warrant, the ICC noted the murder of at least 19 persons allegedly drug pushers and thieves by members of the so-called Davao Death Squad (DDS) in or around Davao City, as well of 24 individuals under the supervision of the members of the Philippine law enforcement personnel with assistance of several civilians in various locations across the country.
“The Chamber finds that there are reasonable grounds to believe that, during the relevant period, Mr. Duterte was the founder and head of the 'DDS', the Mayor of Davao City, and the President of the Philippines,” the warrant reads.
“As shown below, the Chamber finds reasonable grounds to believe that, in his role as the head of the DDS and subsequently the President of the Philippines, Mr. Duterte used the direct perpetrators of the crimes as tools to commit the crimes,” it added.
The ICC said there is a need to issue an arrest warrant against Duterte to ensure his appearance before the court, as it accepts that “there is no reasonable expectation that he would cooperate with a summons to appear issued by the Court.”
“The Chamber observes that Mr. Duterte, even though no longer the President of the Philippines, appears to continue to wield considerable power,” it said.
“Mindful of the resultant risk of interference with the investigations and the security of witnesses and victims, the Chamber is satisfied that the arrest of Mr. Duterte is necessary within the meaning of article 58(1) (b) (i) of the Statute to ensure his appearance before the Court,” it added. (TPM/SunStar Philippines)