An Open Letter to Ms. Fatou Bensouda, Prosecutor, ICC

June 16, 2021

Ms. Fatou Bensouda

Prosecutor

International Criminal Court

Through the kindness of the

Information and Evidence Unit

Office of the Prosecutor

The Hague, Netherlands

Email: otp.informationdesk@icc-cpi.int

Dear Ms Bensouda:

I have read the full text of your distinguished office’s public redacted version of “Request for authorisation for investigation pursuant to article 15(3), 24 May 2021, ICC-01/21-7-SECRET-Exp” (the “Request”) and would like to express, on behalf of my fellow citizens of the Republic of the Philippines, our profoundest appreciation and gratitude for your heroic efforts to hold President Duterte accountable for his crimes against humanity and the Filipino people.

I was in tears reading your Request, as it articulates so completely and accurately the state-sponsored slaughter of Filipinos institutionalized by President Duterte, which our judiciary, among other Philippine government institutions, are in no position to adjudicate today--in spite of declarations to the contrary by the mouthpieces of President Duterte. As your Request astutely points out, even the so-called efforts of the Philippine Department of Justice under the “technical assistance” granted by the UN Human Rights Council (in October 2020) have been and will indeed remain perfunctory for as long as President Duterte is in power and/or his anointed successors manage to cheat their way to “victory” in the next national elections in 2022. Hence, we, the Filipino people, have no recourse but to seek justice through the ICC. And time is of the essence.

As you may know, I have written an open letter to your successor, Mr. Karim Asad Ahmad Khan (March 5, 2021) and Ms. Michelle Bachelet (United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, March 10, 2021), to beseech their respective offices to pursue (and, in the case of the UN, to reconsider pursuing) a full investigation of President Duterte’s crimes against humanity. And when the damning evidence is outed, to prosecute him and his implementers to the fullest extent of the law.

We sincerely hope and pray that the ICC and your successor, Mr. Khan in particular, will stay the course of your courageous initiative to investigate and prosecute President Duterte, especially in the context of a thoroughly inept and inutile government that has been completely co-opted and corrupted by President Duterte himself.

Thank you again for your invaluable help to a cowered and suffering nation.

Sincerely,

Mario Puruganan

cc:

Ms. Michelle Bachelet

United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights

Through the kindness of the

Civil Society Section

Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR)

Geneva, Switzerland

Email: civilsociety@ohchr.org