Photo credit: ICC

In a recent statement, Solicitor General Menardo Guevarra made it clear that the Philippine government isn't obliged to assist the International Criminal Court (ICC) in its investigations, even though it cannot prevent the ICC from moving forward with its probe.

Since its withdrawal from the ICC in 2019, the Philippines has firmly maintained that it has no legal duty to cooperate with the ICC prosecutor. “We disengaged from the ICC three years ago. The government isn’t required to help the ICC prosecutor with his investigation,” Guevarra told reporters on Tuesday.

He added that while the ICC prosecutor has the freedom to conduct interviews via various means—be it online, by phone, email, or face-to-face—he cannot expect the Philippine government to facilitate these interactions. “The prosecutor can reach out directly to individuals, but the government will not be involved in setting that up,” Guevarra explained.

Guevarra also revealed that his office has provided recommendations to Malacañang in response to the ICC’s formal request for assistance. Although the specifics of these recommendations are confidential, Guevarra confirmed that the ICC’s list of interests includes several high-ranking police officials from the previous administration. However, he clarified that not all are former Philippine National Police (PNP) chiefs, but rather high-ranking officers who are ‘under suspicion’ rather than accused.