As a standoff between Senator Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa and government law enforcement agents dragged into its second day, five of his Senate colleagues filed a resolution urging him to voluntarily give himself up to face an arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court.
Senators Francis Pangilinan, Vicente Sotto III, Panfilo Lacson, Risa Hontiveros, and Bam Aquino filed the resolution calling on Dela Rosa to submit himself to authorities in connection with the ICC warrant, which was confirmed on May 11. The ICC’s Pre-Trial Chamber found there were “reasonable grounds to believe” Dela Rosa had committed the crime against humanity of murder, citing incidents in which at least 32 people were killed between 2016 and 2018 during former President Rodrigo Duterte’s bloody war on drugs.
Dela Rosa appeared in the Senate on May 11 for the first time since October 2025, breaking a months-long absence to participate in a dramatic leadership shakeup that removed Sotto as Senate president and installed Senator Alan Peter Cayetano in his place. National Bureau of Investigation agents attempted to arrest him on the Senate floor, leading the chamber’s senators to vote to place him under protective custody and hold the NBI agents in contempt.
Dela Rosa said his camp would “exhaust all available means” to prevent his transfer to The Hague, and that his legal team had filed a manifestation with the Supreme Court seeking a temporary restraining order to block any arrest, detention, or surrender without a valid Philippine judicial warrant.
In an emotional appeal, Dela Rosa addressed President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. directly, pleading not to be sent to The Hague. “Sana ‘wag niya akong ipadala sa The Hague, ‘yun lang naman. Kahit saang court dito sa Pilipinas. Pareho tayong Pilipino,” he said.
The five senators who filed the resolution calling for his voluntary surrender represent a notable cross-section. Pangilinan, Hontiveros, and Aquino have been among the Senate’s most consistent voices in support of ICC accountability, while Sotto — himself the Senate president ousted in part by Dela Rosa’s return — and Lacson add weight from the institution’s center. Lacson had previously stated that the Senate’s protection of Dela Rosa is “limited” under the Constitution, noting that the charter is “very clear” that immunity from arrest applies only in cases where the penalty is less than six years.
Legal experts have echoed that position. Former law dean Mel Sta. Maria said the Senate “must not coddle and protect a fugitive,” warning that doing so could amount to obstruction of justice. He stressed there is no law expressly making Senate premises a safe haven from arrest warrants, and that matters involving crimes against humanity fall under executive, not legislative, authority.
Dela Rosa is the second Philippine figure to have an ICC arrest warrant confirmed in connection with the drug war investigation. Former President Rodrigo Duterte was arrested in March 2025 and has since been held in The Hague on crimes against humanity charges. Under Republic Act 9851, the Philippine government has both the option and the obligation to cooperate with the ICC, including through direct surrender — the same mechanism used in Duterte’s case.
The standoff remains unresolved as of press time, with Dela Rosa sheltering inside the Senate and his legal team awaiting a Supreme Court response to their injunction bid.
