Spokesperson of ICC Speaks After VP Sara Duterte Questions Number of Evidence
ICC – International Criminal Court spokesperson Fadi El Abdallah explained that ‘even one killing may be considered crime against humanity’.
The legal team of former Philippine President Rodrigo Roa Duterte has confirmed receiving a copy of documents detailing the 181 items of evidence against him. Following it, Vice Pres. Sara Duterte claimed that it is allegedly not a case for the International Criminal Court and even in the country.
Vice Pres. Sara Duterte sought for the names of the alleged 30,000 victims of the Duterte war on drugs campaign. The Vice President asked how the other camp can prove the “systematic killing of the 30,000 victims” if they do not have the names and the numbers of victims stated does not reach 50.
Following the statement of the daughter of former Pres. Rodrigo Roa Duterte, ICC spokesperson Fadi El Abdallah clarified the number of incident required for it to be called a crime against humanity. Based on a report on GMA News, the Spox stressed that it can be “any other number of criminal conducts”.
The ICC Spokesperson further said that “if there is a plan that involves a widespread or systematic recurrent attack against a civilian population’, even one killing may be considered a crime against humanity. Based on the report, several legal experts also previously stressed that naming the victims is unnecessary.
Amid their preparation for the confirmation of charges which is set on September 23, Duterte’s lead counsel Nicholas Kaufman is confident that their jurisdictional argument should succeed and when that happens, it won’t even reach the confirmation of charges against his client. He stressed that he will be disappointed if the argument won’t be able to convince the judges.
Nicholas Kaufman is a British-Israeli lawyer. The camp of former Pres. Rodrigo Roa Duterte has yet to name the other members of the ICC legal team of the former Chief Executive. He is currently detained in the Hague Penitentiary Institution for more than a week now.
According to Vice Pres. Sara Duterte, she will set the legal team of her father, introduce them to her brothers and to Duterte’s common-law wife, Honeylet Avanceña, and go home to the Philippines. She has an impeachment case to face and the former President also wants her to return to the country immediately.
Amid the visible and vocal demonstrations of the Duterte supporters as they show support to the former President and call for his return to the country, former Pres. Rodrigo Roa Duterte asked his supporters to leave the matter to his lawyers and the court.