Human rights advocates declared Senator Ronald “Bato” Dela Rosa a suspect-at-large under the International Criminal Court (ICC), demanding his immediate arrest and turnover to The Hague.
The National Union of Peoples’ Lawyers (NUPL) and Rise Up for Life and for Rights said Dela Rosa joins 30 other individuals worldwide, including Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who face standing ICC warrants for grave crimes.
Dela Rosa, they stressed, is implicated as co-perpetrator in crimes against humanity committed in the Philippines between 2011 and 2019, when he served as a police official and oversaw death squad operations in Davao. The ICC warrant, issued in November 2025 and unsealed only yesterday, is enforceable without a domestic counterpart.
Victims of the drug war represented by NUPL called for his arrest, describing it as a painful but necessary step toward justice for families whose kin were killed in alleged “nanlaban” police operations.
The groups underscored that the Philippines, though no longer an ICC member, remains bound by obligations under the Rome Statute.
The Supreme Court ruling in Pangilinan v. Cayetano affirmed the state’s duty to cooperate with ICC investigations and execute arrest warrants.
They argued that Dela Rosa’s arrest could follow the same process envisioned for former President Rodrigo Duterte: custody by Philippine police, then turnover to ICC authorities.
Jurisdictional challenges, they added, cannot be entertained by local courts, as the Rome Statute vests such authority solely in ICC chambers.
“Protection by the Senate is inappropriate,” the statement read, “not when the crimes imputed to Dela Rosa are so grave.”
The groups concluded that genuine justice requires Dela Rosa’s immediate surrender.
“Dela Rosa cannot only show up for work only when convenient, and he cannot hide in the Senate from the enforcement of laws that the Senate has approved. Genuine justice demands that Dela Rosa be brought before the ICC the soonest possible time to stand trial.” # (ZIA LUNA)
