Drug War

Judges at The Hague ordered the former president to remain in custody ahead of trial, after Malacañang said he appeared to be in good health at his first in-person appearance — an observation that cuts against his own defense team's argument that he cannot understand the proceedings against him.

Interior Secretary Jonvic Remulla said negotiations are ongoing to arrest Sen. Ronald "Bato" dela Rosa, who has evaded an International Criminal Court warrant since May, but warned a full police operation could turn deadly.

The Department of Justice has issued subpoenas to the Senate Secretariat and the PNP Firearms and Explosives Office as part of an obstruction investigation tied to the failed attempt to serve the ICC arrest warrant on fugitive Senator Ronald dela Rosa — while the NBI warns more international warrants are imminent against other drug war perpetrators.

Multisectoral groups formally launched the Philippine Truth and Reconciliation Commission on May 27 to document extrajudicial killings under Rodrigo Duterte's drug war, with former ICC judge and UP Law dean Raul Pangalangan as chair — the first organized domestic effort to build a comprehensive public record of atrocities that the ICC is now prosecuting in The Hague.

The International Criminal Court scheduled the opening of Rodrigo Duterte's trial for November 30, 2026, following a May 27 status conference where judges mapped out the proceedings on witness counts, evidence volumes, and possible additional incidents — while Duterte, still detained in The Hague, waived his right to appear.

With the Supreme Court refusing to block the ICC arrest warrant and the DOJ declaring Dela Rosa a fugitive, the Philippine National Police mobilized specialized tracker units on May 22 to hunt down the senator — who confirmed intelligence shows is still inside the country.

In a 9-5-1 vote on May 20, the Supreme Court refused to issue a temporary restraining order shielding Senator Ronald "Bato" dela Rosa from the ICC warrant for crimes against humanity — prompting the Department of Justice to declare the following day that his arrest can now proceed without a local court order.

The Office of the Solicitor General filed an 83-page comment urging the Supreme Court to dismiss Senator Ronald "Bato" dela Rosa's bid to block his ICC arrest, arguing Philippine law already authorizes enforcement of the warrant and that dela Rosa's conduct since the warrant surfaced makes him a fugitive from justice.

The ICC warrant against Senator Bato dela Rosa exists, is authentic, and covers crimes the ICC has jurisdiction over. But whether it can be executed in the Philippines without a Philippine court's verification first is a constitutional question the Supreme Court has never ruled on — and the answer affects every Filipino, not just Duterte allies.

Article III of the Constitution is clear: no arrest warrant except from a Philippine court with probable cause. But when the executive acts immediately and the Supreme Court can't catch up in time, what's written has no meaning. This is the deeper question in the chase for Bato — and what every Filipino should worry about, not just Duterte allies.