Voting 15 affirmative with 3 negative and 2 abstentions, the Senate on Wednesday adopted a resolution asking the International Criminal Court (ICC) to consider allowing former President Rodrigo Roa Duterte to be placed on house arrest for humanitarian reasons.
Senate Resolution 144, initiated by Minority Leader Alan Peter Cayetano – Duterte’s vice presidential running mate in the 2016 elections – came days after Duterte’s daughter Sara claimed that he was ‘found unconscious’ in his detention cell in The Hague.
All nine minority senators voted in the affirmative for SR 144.
The negative votes were cast by Senators Risa Hontiveros, Bam Aquino and Kiko Pangilinan.
Senate President Vicente Sotto III and Sen. Raffy Tulfo abstained.
Explaining his vote, Sotto said, ‘I am faced with two difficult’ choices that both align with his principles: affording the former president a comfortable surroundings, while taking into consideration the plight of families seeking justice for crimes against humanity – the charge in the ICC against Duterte, for his dirty war on drugs that reportedly killed thousands without due process.
While he described himself as ‘supportive’ of any efforts to afford the former president – whom his family and lawyer claims suffers a host of medical issues, Sotto worried that ‘my choice’ in the vote on SR 144 might even further divide the nation. Hence, his abstention.
Explaining her negative vote, Hontiveros said that while the senators push for an interim release has been couched in humanitarian terms, its flipside is that it further signals the selective justice system in the country, where other suspects who have not been adjudged guilty are detained for years, despite health issues.
Hontiveros added that the resolution was premature because it was not based on facts, as there is no showing that the ICC has been remiss in caring for Duterte in detention.
Despite Vice President Sara Duterte’s claims about the ‘found unconscious’ and related circumstances, other video reports had other family members who visited the former President as saying ‘he is well, even jolly,’ at kaya pa ngang makipag-usap tungkol sa maraming topic kasama ang politika, flood control at love life [and can even discuss many topics including politics, flood control and love life],’ Hontiveros added..
Besides Alan Cayetano, those who voted for the resolution are Senators Ronald ‘Bato’ dela Rosa, Christopher Lawrence Go, Jinggoy Estrada, JV Ejercito, Sherwin Gatchalian, Imee Marcos, Robin Padilla, Rodante Marcoleta, Erwin Tulfo, Joel Villanueva, Loren Legarda, Mark Villar, Panfilo Lacson and Majority Leader Juan Miguel Zubiri.