ICC is EJK victims’ last recourse — rights group

By Nash Villena, Philippine Canadian Inquirer
February 19, 2026

(Photo courtesy: KARAPATAN/Facebook)

MANILA, Philippines — Rights group Karapatan opposed the remarks of some senators who stand by their belief that extrajudicial killing (EJK) cases from the Duterte administration should be tried in the Philippines and not in an international tribunal.

The group argued that the families of EJK victims have already tried seeking justice for their loved ones in the country’s local courts to no avail, not including the years and challenges that have deterred their pursuit of accountability from ex-president Rodrigo Duterte.

“The justice system in the Philippines has failed the victims, over and over again,” the group said, citing former Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla’s statement saying the local justice system is weak to prosecute the former president.

Karapatan stressed that the filing of charges at the International Criminal Court (ICC) is the victims’ “last recourse in seeking justice” out of Duterte’s bloody war on drugs campaign that claimed thousands of lives.

“We can only hope that the senators know that in supporting the victims, it is important to discern the accountability of those who were accessory to and with direct involvement in the mass murder of Filipinos during the time of Duterte, including their own colleagues,” it added.