Former Philippines president Rodrigo Duterte has mentioned he’ll settle for duty for his authorities’s so-called “conflict on medicine” in a video message filmed on board a airplane shortly earlier than he was taken into the custody of the worldwide felony court docket (ICC).
“No matter occurred previously, I would be the entrance of our legislation enforcement and the army. I mentioned this already, that I’ll shield you, and I can be answerable for every little thing,” he mentioned.
The video message, which appeared to have been filmed on board the plane that introduced him to the Netherlands to face expenses of crimes towards humanity, had been his first feedback to the Philippines public since his dramatic arrest on Tuesday.
Wearing a plain white shirt, and talking to the digital camera, he mentioned: “This can be an extended authorized continuing. However I say to you, I’ll proceed to serve the nation. So be it. If that’s my future. Thanks”.
Duterte has beforehand mentioned he provided “no apologies, no excuses” for his bloody anti medicine crackdowns which activists say might have killed as many as 30,000 folks.
Duterte’s airplane landed at Rotterdam airport at simply earlier than 5pm native time on Wednesday, and he was transferred to a detention unit on the Dutch coast.
In an announcement the ICC confirmed it had taken custody of the previous chief, with the court docket’s chief prosecutor, Karim Khan, calling it “a vital step in our steady work to make sure accountability for the victims of probably the most critical crimes below ICC jurisdiction.”
Duterte is the primary former chief of an Asian nation to be served an arrest warrant filed by the ICC.
In an announcement the ICC mentioned its chamber, composed of three judges, had assessed materials submitted by workplace of the prosecutor and located affordable grounds to imagine that Duterte is “individually accountable as an oblique co-perpetrator for the crime towards humanity of homicide, allegedly dedicated within the Philippines between 1 November 2011 and 16 March 2019.”
A listening to can be scheduled “in the end” for Duterte’s preliminary look earlier than the court docket, it mentioned, which can verify his identification and the language through which he is ready to observe the proceedings. It isn’t clear when a trial will start.
Supporters of the previous chief gathered at The Hague Penitentiary Establishment, waiving the Philippines flag and chanting “deliver him again”. Whereas rights consultants and victims’ households have been overjoyed by the information of Duterte’s arrest, the previous chief retains a powerful assist base, particularly within the south of the nation.
“I’m OK, don’t worry,” Duterte, who will flip 80 this month, mentioned within the video message. His daughter, Sara Duterte, the vice-president, additionally arrived in The Hague on Wednesday night to supply assist.
Legal professionals for Duterte on Wednesday filed a petition on behalf of his youngest daughter, Veronica, accusing the federal government of “kidnapping” him, and demanding he be returned to the Philippines.
Duterte’s supporters have argued that, because the Philippines withdrew from the Rome statute in 2019, the ICC now not has jurisdiction. Nevertheless, the court docket has beforehand mentioned it retains jurisdiction for alleged crimes that occurred within the nation earlier than its withdrawal.
The nation’s president, Ferdinand Marcos Jr, who as soon as ran in an alliance with vice-president Sara Duterte however is now embroiled in a bitter feud with the household, informed reporters this week he was assured “the arrest was correct, appropriate and adopted all needed authorized procedures”.
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