HINILING ni International Criminal Court (ICC) prosecutor Karim Khan sa ICC Appeals Chamber na tanggihan ang apela ng Pilipinas sa desisyon na pahintulutan ang pagpapatuloy ng imbestigasyon kaugnay sa drug war killings sa Pilipinas.
Sa 59 pahinang dokumento na may petsang Abril 4, sinabi ni Khan na nabigo ang gobyerno na magpakita ng anomang mali sa desisyon at nabigong tukuyin ang anomang mali na “materially affected” sa desisyon.
“The Prosecution respectfully requests the Appeals Chamber to reject the Appeal and confirm the Pre-Trial Chamber’s authorization of the resumption of the Prosecution’s investigation,” ayon kay Khan.
“Instead, the Chamber reasonably and correctly considered the materials submitted by the Philippines and correctly applied the law,” dagdag na pahayag nito.
Sinabi ni Khan na ang ICC ay may hurisdiksyon sa nasabing sitwasyon na di umano’y krimen na nangyari mula Nobyembre 2011 hanggang Marso 2019 dahil ang bansa ay kumalas lamang mula sa ICC noong Marso 2019.
Makailang ulit namang sinabi ng mga opisyal ng Pilipinas na walang hurisdiksyon ang ICC sa bansa matapos na kumalas ang Pilipinas sa Rome Statute, nag-establish ng ICC, noong Marso 2019.
“The Philippines, therefore, was a State Party to the Statute during the temporal scope of the authorized investigation. The Philippines’ subsequent withdrawal from the Statute thus has no effect on the previously established jurisdiction of the Court,” ayon kay Khan.
Sinabi pa nito na ang state cooperation ay hindi legal prerequisite para sa paggamit o pagganap sa hurisdiksyon ng ICC.
“Although State cooperation is fundamental to the Court’s efficient conduct of its proceedings, it is not a jurisdictional precondition that must be met for the Court to exercise its jurisdiction,” ani Khan.
Tinuran pa ni Khan na sa kauna-unahang pagkakataon ay binanggit ng pamahalaan sa apela nito ang argumento na may kinalaman sa domestic processes.
“It has never previously articulated a formal mandatory progression from the PNP-IAS to review by the Department of Justice panel to case build-up by the NBI, nor in any event does it now cite any clear basis under the law of the Philippines requiring that this sequence is followed,” ani Khan.
“Furthermore, the Philippines presents no authority to support its claim that domestic ‘procedural rules demand a lengthier investigation phase while, in turn, the commencement of court proceedings following an investigation are usually immediately’,” dagdag na pahayag nito. (CHRISTIAN DALE)
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