Philippines defends ex-President Duterte's transfer to ICC in Senate inquiry

MANILA (Reuters) - Philippine officials on Thursday defended before the country's Senate the arrest and transfer to the International Criminal Court of former President Rodrigo Duterte, as they faced allegations he was illegally abducted at the behest of a foreign institution.  

Duterte is set to be the first Asian former head of state to go on trial at the ICC after he was  arrested last week and sent to The Hague, where he faces accusations of murder as a crime against humanity over a "war on drugs" that killed thousands of people and defined his 2016-2022 presidency. 

The government's decision to hand Duterte over triggered a backlash among his supporters, family and allies, who have petitioned the Supreme Court arguing the arrest was illegal and the ICC no longer has jurisdiction in the Philippines.

Duterte appeared before the ICC's pre-trial chamber on March 14 and remains in ICC custody, with his next appearance scheduled for September.  

"Justice rendered by a foreign country is not justice. It's slavery," said Senator Imee Marcos, who presided over Thursday's televised hearing. 

Marcos is the sister of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr but has close ties with the Duterte family. She said his transfer was tantamount to an admission that the Philippines was incapable of putting him on trial. 

Duterte's arrest followed years of him taunting the ICC in profanity-laden speeches since he unilaterally withdrew the Philippines from the court's founding treaty as it started looking into allegations of systematic extrajudicial killings of drug dealers and users on his watch.

Duterte has assumed full responsibility for the killings but denies he led a campaign of systematic murder and says he instructed police to kill only in self-defence. 

'ALL ABOUT POLITICS'

Philippine officials on Thursday told the inquiry the handover of Duterte was above board as it was at the request of Interpol and not in cooperation with the ICC. 

"The ICC tries people for individual crimes, not states. So the Philippines as a state cannot be called upon by the ICC to do something for them," said Justice Secretary Juanito Remulla. 

He cited "international humanitarian law" as the basis of the arrest, adding the ICC has no authority over the Philippines.

Duterte's arrest came after an acrimonious breakdown in an an alliance between President Marcos and the Duterte family, who joined forces to sweep a 2022 election that saw Sara Duterte, the former president's daughter, become vice president.  She has since been impeached by the lower house.  

Sara Duterte joined Thursday's Senate hearing virtually and said the apprehension of her father was "patently an illegal arrest" that was orchestrated by the administration to "demolish political opponents". 

"This is all about politics," she said. 

The ICC, a court of last resort, says it has jurisdiction to prosecute alleged crimes that took place prior to a member's withdrawal. 

(Reporting by Mikhail Flores; Editing by Martin Petty)