Senator Imee Marcos revealed on Thursday that preliminary findings of the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations point to serious lapses by the Philippine government in its handling of the potential arrest of former President Rodrigo Duterte.
In a press conference, Marcos asserted that the government had no legal duty to surrender Duterte to the International Criminal Court (ICC), yet still moved forward with preparations to do so. She claimed the Marcos administration, led by her brother President Bongbong Marcos, made a firm decision to cooperate with the ICC, and planning had already begun before March 11.
Marcos also criticized the process, saying constitutional rights were disregarded. She stressed that no arrest warrant was issued by any local court and that the situation did not meet any legal grounds for a warrantless arrest. She concluded that the former president’s rights to liberty and due process were clearly violated.
