MANILA, Philippines — As Sen. Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa escaped arrest related to a case filed before the International Criminal Court (ICC) over his alleged role in the previous administration’s deadly drug crackdown, some pointed to the apprehension of two opposition senators inside the Senate during Rodrigo Duterte’s presidency.
Last year, when Duterte was brought to the ICC in the Netherlands, then-Senate President Francis Escudero explained why dela Rosa could not be arrested inside the Senate complex if an arrest warrant were issued against him as an indirect co-perpetrator of crimes against humanity, including murder.