By Filane Mikee Cervantes
MANILA – Online attacks against an International Criminal Court (ICC) judge could be considered offenses against the administration of justice and potentially lead to additional charges against former president Rodrigo Duterte, a lawyer said Wednesday.
In a Bagong Pilipinas Ngayon interview, Attorney Kristina Conti, assistant to counsel at the ICC, warned that the social media harassment allegedly carried out by Duterte’s supporters could harm his case rather than help it.
Supporters of the former president appeared to have flooded the LinkedIn posts of ICC Pre-Trial Chamber I Presiding Judge Iulia Motoc with comments, some urging her to release Duterte.
“Posibleng makasama. Ako nga – makakasama kasi, una, sa public perception, ang itsurahan, ‘Ganito pala ang Pilipino, na kukuyugin iyong judge para lang kumbaga makakuha ng hustisya’ (It could be detrimental. I mean – it could be detrimental because, first, in public perception, it appears that Filipinos would gang up on a judge just to obtain justice),” Conti said.
The online attacks, she noted, could be interpreted as an attempt to interfere with court proceedings.
“Mayroon sinasabing offenses against the administration of justice o iyong parang kapag nag-interfere ka sa mga proseso, kapag nanakot ka, nag-intimidate ka ng huwes para gawin niya iyong trabaho niya improperly o hindi niya gawin iyong trabaho niya. Naku, iyan ay puwedeng tingnan na dagdag na kaso kay Presidente Duterte (There are so-called offenses against the administration of justice, or when you interfere with processes, when you threaten or intimidate a judge to perform their job improperly or not perform their job, that could be considered an additional case against President Duterte),” Conti said.
She added that if these attacks are seen as systematic and linked to Duterte’s influence, the court could take them into account.
Duterte is facing an ICC investigation over alleged crimes against humanity linked to his administration’s violent drug war.
While the Philippines withdrew from the ICC in 2019, the court maintains jurisdiction over alleged crimes committed while the country was still a member.
Conti emphasized that intimidation and online harassment would not stop the legal process.
“Hindi po mapapalaya ng ganiyang strategy si Pangulong Duterte, hindi din niyan mapababa ang kaso o mapapa-dismiss ito eventually (That strategy will not free President Duterte, nor will it reduce or dismiss the case eventually),” she said.
Meanwhile, Conti agreed with the Department of Justice’s position that the writ of habeas corpus filed by Duterte’s children is moot.
She explained that a writ of habeas corpus requires the custodian to present the detained individual and justify the detention.
Since Duterte is no longer under Philippine custody, the Supreme Court cannot compel foreign authorities, she said.
“A writ of habeas corpus calls for the production of the body by a custodian,” Conti said. “So, kung sino po ang may hawak doon sa tao, sinasabi ng korte ‘O, pakita mo nga sa akin at sabihin ninyo kung ano ang legal na batayan na hinahawakan mo siya o diniditine’ (Whoever has custody of the person is ordered by the court to present them and state the legal basis for their detention).”
She added that the ICC’s arrest warrant serves as a sufficient legal basis for Duterte’s detention, regardless of debates about the court’s jurisdiction.
“But when it comes kung legal or illegal, may warrant eh (When it comes to legality, there is a warrant), and that’s all the police needed to present to the detainee,” she said.
Duterte was arrested on Tuesday last week after the International Criminal Police Organization (Interpol) served the arrest warrant issued by the ICC.
He was sent to The Hague in the Netherlands, where the ICC is located, on the same day. (PNA)
