The International People’s Tribunal (IPT) on Wednesday, September 19, has convicted President Rodrigo Duterte of crimes against humanity for human rights violations committed in the Philippines.
The decision stated that Duterte committed “various crimes against humanity” and “war crimes” against Filipinos, citing numerous witnesses, experts, and resource persons who testified against Duterte.
“We heard the summary of testimonies of witnesses– many of them heart-wrenching, traumatic and horrific- experts and resource persons as well as the digest of wealth of data, information, facts and other evidence,” the decision stated.
“The abundant evidence adduced before us leads to the indubitable conclusion that indeed Defendant Duterte’s policy pronouncements, statements, and actions are in brazen violation of a slew of people’s rights,” it added.
Presidential spokesperson Harry Roque, meanwhile, dismissed the IPT proceedings saying that the conviction has no official sanction.
“The validity of the findings will depend on the validity of the tribunal,” Roque said in a press briefing.
“They appear to be a propaganda body of the international left and, therefore, we set it aside as being a useless piece of propaganda against the government,” he added.
The decision is expected to be submitted to the United Nations Human Rights Council, the European Parliament, and the International Criminal Court (ICC) where there are also pending cases against Duterte.
