Respect matters

International probers must recognize the need to show courtesy in the performance of their job, something which is expected in civilized relations.

The ongoing visit of United Nations Special Rapporteur, or SR, on Freedom of Opinion and Expression Irene Khan in which she will talk to civil society organizations about looking into the state of freedom of expression was coordinated with the government but that does not make her presence any less independent.

Khan is the third SR to visit the Philippines in 14 months, after SR for the Sale and Exploitation of Children Fatimah Singhateh in November 2022 and SR for Climate Change and Human Rights Dr. Ian Fry in November 2023.

All of the visits went smoothly and the experts did what they had set out to accomplish with the government ensuring their security and safe travel.

The International Criminal Court, or ICC, however, wanted to do things differently as it has remained surreptitious in the way it conducts its probe on the war on drugs with some reports from credible sources saying that its personnel slip in and out of the country incognito.

The ICC is not welcome in the country due to the arrogance it has shown in dealing with the Philippines over the crimes against humanity complaint filed against former officials implicated in the alleged extrajudicial killings in the war on drugs.

With a functioning justice system, the Philippines does not have an obligation to the ICC which was created to prosecute crimes of unstable nations, particularly those undergoing armed conflict.

The country is not even a party to the ICC, which is also shunned by the United States, China, Russia, Israel and some other nations that jealously guard their sovereignty.

The ICC would have polished its image had it the decency to climb down from its overbearing rostrum.

Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla perfectly stated the government’s position that the ICC is free to enter the country but it must disclose its intentions.

It is not about protecting the individuals named in the complaint, the filing of which even has a political motivation, but a necessary action in observance of comity.

“We’re not here to stop them because if they’re not doing anything illegal, there’s nothing wrong with that,” Remulla said in a Japanese media interview.

“If they’re getting statements, they’re getting evidence. It’s okay,” Remulla said of the ICC investigators. “But we have to clarify many issues, especially about procedure.”

Thus far, the ICC’s attitude is that the Philippines has no choice but to submit to its investigation.

The Philippines has not been a member of the ICC since March 2019, after former President Rodrigo Duterte, who is among the accused, initiated the withdrawal.

Even Remulla has had to rely on second-hand information regarding the whereabouts of the ICC agents.

“We will have to deal with several legal implications of the action of the ICC in the Philippines, and it might have to end up in the Supreme Court,” he said.

He stressed that “procedural matters have to be observed to make sure that the rights of people are respected.”

One such right is that a fair investigation, not by a single prejudiced source, is undertaken.

The ICC in insisting that small nations should be subjected to its omniscience proves its agenda of self-preservation amid criticisms of being inutile in running after rights violations by global powers.

Filipinos, who underwent centuries of subjugation, have had enough of foreign impositions.