ICC case against Duterte remains valid says ex-lawmaker

Former Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte's pending crimes against humanity charge at the International Criminal Court (ICC) remains valid, according to former congressman Neri Colmenares.

Colmenares stated that the ICC will proceed with the trial, emphasizing that the core issue is a president ordering killings and a flawed justice system, not the exact number of deaths.

Vice-President Sara Duterte-Carpio had previously questioned the validity of the ICC case, suggesting that prosecutors might not be able to prove the government sanctioned state-sponsored killings.

However, an ICC spokesman clarified that the initial pieces of evidence on 43 killings were only for the application of his arrest warrant and not the sole incidents to be included in the charge.

The spokesman added that these initial incidents were a "sample of incidents" sufficient for judges to sustain the charge of murder as a crime against humanity for the purpose of issuing an arrest warrant.

In the original application for Duterte's arrest warrant, the ICC prosecutor cited 45 acts of murder, four acts of torture, and three acts of rape as bases for the crimes against humanity charges.

ICC judges agreed that there were "reasonable grounds to believe that ... murders of persons allegedly involved in various forms of criminal activities, including drug-related ones, were committed" in the Philippines.

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