Lawyer behind ICC communication: I fear I’ll be killed anytime

MANILA, Philippines — The lawyer who sent an information to the International Criminal Court regarding the Philippines’ bloody war on drugs said that he does not go out often because of his constant fear for his life.

Jude Sabio said he has received numerous death threats since ICC Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda announced in February that her office has started a preliminary examination into President Rodrigo Duterte’s anti-narcotics campaign based on the communications he had filed in April 2017.  

“Nowadays I do not go out so much in public places. Specifically, I’m afraid that I’ll be killed at any time. Somebody will be just coming and pump a bullet into my head,” Sabio said in an interview with the National Public Radio, a Washington, DC-based media organization, posted May 5.

Sabio, who is also the legal counsel of self-confessed hitman Edgar Matobato, said he has been living in Manila for more than a year because he would feel more vulnerable should he return to his home in Mindanao.

He noted that he is now being viewed as the “foremost villain in the country” for accusing Duterte and other senior government officials of crimes against humanity but the 51-year-old lawyer has no regrets.

“I’m doing this because this is the right thing to do. And the only way that we can achieve justice against the president is to bring this to the ICC because there is no way that this can be done in the country right now,” Sabio told NPR.

READ: Matobato lawyer welcomes ICC preliminary examination into drug war

In an earlier interview on ANC’s “Headstart,” Sabio expressed confidence that the ICC formal investigation into the drug war would be launched within six months.

The preliminary examination is intended to determine whether the communication of supposed violations of government security forces under Duterte’s administration is within the court’s jurisdiction.

Malacañang, on the other, does not expect that the allegations would prosper. But in March, the country announced its withdrawal from the Hague-based court, citing the perceived bias of the international community. 

Under Article 127 of the Rome Statute, a state party may withdraw from the treaty through a written notification addressed to the UN secretary-general. The withdrawal will take effect a year after the date of receipt of the notification.

Individuals and organizations both at home and abroad have criticized the government for its ferocious war on drugs, which has claimed over 12,000 lives, according to human rights watchdogs.

The government, however, disputes these numbers and counts a little over 4,000 “drug personalities” killed in police operations.