MANILA, Philippines — Malacañang said Saturday that any complaint filed in connection with Philippine government policies at a foreign tribunal is an “utter disrespect” to the sovereignty of the Philippines. Panelo said this as the International Criminal Court (ICC) announced that it would soon release its findings on the complaint filed against President Rodrigo Duterte on human rights abuses and alleged extra-judicial killings during his bloody campaign against illegal drugs. To recall, Morales and Rosario filed the complaint before the ICC due to China’s fishing activities in the West Philippine Sea. In February 2018, the ICC launched a preliminary examination into rights abuses allegedly committed during Duterte’s anti-drug campaign. In March 2018, Duterte pulled out the Philippines from the Rome Statute, which created the ICC, due to “baseless and outrageous attacks” against him and his government.

Source: Philippine Daily Inquirer December 07, 2019 11:15 UTC