Drug war victims’ families submit documents to ICC

MANILA, Philippines — Hundreds of drug war victims and their families have submitted their views and comments on the ongoing appeals proceedings at the International Criminal Court (ICC).

The ICC Registrar submitted to the Appeals Chamber five representations received from victims of the alleged crimes that were the subject of the ongoing investigation.

In a three-page registry submission dated May 22, Marc Dubuisson, director of the ICC Registry’s division of judicial services, said the submissions were assessed “as falling inside the temporal, territorial and material scope of the Situation.”

“The representations contain the views and concerns expressed on behalf of 350 individual victims and 165 families,” he added.

According to the filing, the documents were “classified as ‘confidential ex parte, only available to the Registry’ as they contain confidential information that may lead to the identification of the victims concerned by the Situation.”

No other details were released to the public.

The Philippine government is asking the ICC Appeals Chamber to overturn the Jan. 26 decision of the Pre-Trial Chamber I, which allowed the resumption of the preliminary investigation into the alleged crimes against humanity committed in connection with the Duterte administration’s bloody campaign against illegal drugs.

Last March, the ICC Appeals Chamber allowed drug war victims to express their views and comments on the appeal filed by the Philippine government.

It also allowed the Office of Public Counsel for Victims (OPCV) to submit written observations on the Philippines’ appeal brief.

In its submission, the OPCV said that the victims would be denied their right to truth, justice and reparations if the ongoing investigation is stopped.

“The issues on appeal fundamentally affect the general interests of the victims. A reversal of the Impugned Decision on appeal may in fact result in halting the Prosecutor’s investigation, thereby jeopardizing the victims’ rights to truth, justice and reparations,” read the 28-page court filing signed by OCPV principal counsel Paolina Massidda.

Last 2022, the Registry also transmitted to Pre-Trial Chamber I eight representations submitted in behalf of 293 individual victims and 366 families.

The representations at the time unanimously supported the resumption of the investigation by the ICC prosecutor.