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PGA’s vision is to contribute to the creation of a Rules-Based International Order for a more equitable, safe, sustainable and democratic world.

Philippines and the Rome Statute

Introduction

PGA has been working in The Philippines since 2005, when preparations started fora Meeting of the Working Group of the Consultative Assembly of Parliamentarians for the ICC on the Universality of the Rome Statute in Asia, at the National Assembly of the Philippines, seeking to accelerate the process of ratification. Participating Speaker of the House of Representatives, Jose DeVenecia, publicly declared his support to the ICC at this occasion.

Rome Statute

The Philippines signed the Rome Statute on 28 December 2000 and ratified the Rome Statute on 30 August 2011.

Agreement on Immunities and Privileges

The Philippines have not signed the Agreement on Immunities and Privileges.

Kampala Amendments of 2010

The Philippines have not ratified the Kampala Amendments.

Status on the domestic implementation of the Rome Statute

On 11 December 2009, the Republic Act No. 9851 - Act Defining And Penalizing Crimes Against International Humanitarian Law, Genocide And Other Crimes Against Humanity, Organizing Jurisdiction, Designating Special Courts, And For Related Purposes, which had been previously enacted on the 27 July by the Senate and House of Representatives of the Philippines in Congress, was signed the President Arroyo.

The Act 9851, also known as the International Humanitarian Law Bill provides a definition and penalties for crimes regarding international humanitarian law, genocide and crimes against humanity amongst other provisions. It also provides for criminal liability of commanders and other superiors under the principle of command responsibility; protection of civilians, non-combatants, witnesses as well as reparations to the victims. It further provides for the universal jurisdiction over persons, whether military or civilian, suspected or accused of the crimes defined and penalized under the law, and designates the regional trial court as having original and exclusive jurisdiction over the international crimes punishable under the law.

Agreement on Privileges and Immunities of the Court(APIC)

The Philippines did not sign the APIC.

Additional Agreements

The Philippines signed a Bilateral Immunity Agreement (BIA) regarding the surrender of persons to international tribunals, proposed by the United States, on 9 and 13 May of 2003, which entered into force on 13 May of 2003.

Progress and PGA Action

The Philippines ratification of the Rome Statute came just a week after the vote of the ICC Ratification Bill in third reading by the Senate of the Philippines, where PGA Member Sen. Miriam Defensor Santiago, Rapporteur on the Bill and chairperson of the relevant Sub-Committee, and PGA Member Sen. Loren Legarda, Chairperson of the Foreign Relations Committee, played a fundamental role in bringing about an almost unanimous(by 17 votes in favour and only 1 vote against) decision in support of this treaty.

Indeed, Senator Legarda's role in facilitating a Briefing by the President of the ICC, Judge Sang-Hyun Song in the Senate of the Philippines in March 2011 was key in this historic accomplishment. At the same time, Sen. Miriam Defensor-Santiago, MP attended the sub-regional conference held in March in Kuala-Lumpur, PGA Malaysian, which was organized in order to review current ratification and implementation processes of the Rome Statute in a number of countries in the region, with a view to identifying the most effective means to moving these respective processes forward.

On September 2006 the then President of PGA, Sen. Alain Destexhe (Belgium) met briefly with President Arroyo when she was on a State Visit to Belgium and inquired her about ratification.

Human Rights Council Universal Periodic Review

The Philippines have been reviewed during the 13thsession of the UPR in 2012 and have ever since received recommendations to implement the Rome Statute, adopt the Kampala Amendments and the APIC by several states.

The next UPR revision is scheduled to take place in January 2017.


Key Documents
Key PGA Documents
Related Activities
PGA in the Media

Status of the Rome Statute System as of February 2024:

 
States that have ratified the Rome Statute [124]
 
States that have signed the Rome Statute but have not ratified it yet [30]
 
States that have withdrawn from the Rome Statute [2]
 
States that have neither signed nor ratified the Rome Statute
 

124 countries are States Parties to the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court. Of these, 33 are African States, 19 are Asia-Pacific States, 19 are from Eastern Europe, 28 are from Latin American and Caribbean States, and 25 are from Western European and other States.

Work of PGA in this Country:

Philippines: PGA supports the legislative initiative of Sen. Leila de Lima to prevent and counter extrajudicial killings

Philippines: PGA supports the legislative initiative of Sen. Leila de Lima to prevent and counter extrajudicial killings

Senator Leila M. de Lima, member of PGA, recently filed in the Senate of the Philippines Bill no. 1842 to prevent and counter extra-judicial killings, which are taking place in a widespread and systematic manner in the Republic of The Philippines...

Looking Ahead: PGA Member Hon. Hryhoriy Nemyria, MP (Ukraine) addressed the 18th Assembly of States Parties, committing Ukraine to ratify the Rome Statute in 2020.

Final PGA Rome Statute Campaign Update 2019

As 2019 comes to a close, we at Parliamentarians for Global Action (PGA) look back at a year that saw impressive gains in the fight against impunity, but also some setbacks.

In the Philippines, throughout the region, and across the globe, parliamentarians, as democratically-elected representatives of the people, raised their voices to condemn this disappointing development.

Parliamentarians express profound regret over the withdrawal of the Philippines from the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court

In the Philippines, throughout the region, and across the globe, parliamentarians, as democratically-elected representatives of the people, raised their voices to condemn this disappointing development.

The 10th Consultative Assembly of Parliamentarians for the International Criminal Court and the Rule of Law (CAP-ICC) and 40th Annual Forum of PGA took place 16-17 November 2018 in Kyiv, Ukraine.

10th CAP-ICC and 40th Annual Forum of PGA

Parliament of Ukraine in Kyiv, 16-17 November 2018.

Sen. Leila M.de Lima, The Philippines: image / Wikimedia Commons

Senator Leila M. de Lima calls for Urgent Action on the Human Rights Crisis in the Philippines

Statement by PGA Member Hon. Leila M. de Lima (The Philippines) submitted at a side event of the 39th United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) Session, Geneva, Switzerland on 13 September 2018.

PGA members and staff will always remember the extraordinary contribution of Sen. Miriam Defensor Santiago.

Statement by PGA on the Death of Sen. Miriam Defensor Santiago

Members of Parliamentarians for Global Action (PGA) express their sincere condolences and deep sorrow on the passing of Sen. Miriam Defensor Santiago on 29 September 2016.

The Philippines becomes the 117th State Party to this pivotal instrument for the fight against impunity for the most serious crimes of international concern.

The Philippines becomes 117th State Party to the Rome Statute of the ICC

New York/The Hague, August 30, 2011 - Parliamentarians for Global Action (PGA) welcomes today’s deposit of the instrument of ratification of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (ICC) by the Philippines, which becomes the 117th State P

The purpose of this second Consultation was to review current ratification and implementation processes of the Rome Statute in a number of countries in the region, including in particular, in Malaysia.

Second PGA Asia-Pacific Parliamentary Consultation on the Universality of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court

Following on from the First PGA Asian Consultation on the ICC held in the House of Representatives in The Philippines four years ago, the purpose of this second Consultation was to review current ratification and implementation processes of the Rome Statu

The Fourth session of The Consultative Assembly brought together 165 MPs from all continents.

Consultative Assembly of Parliamentarians for the ICC and the Rule of Law - 4th Session

and 28th Annual Parliamentary Forum. Tokyo, Japan, December 4-5, 2006.

Legislators from Cambodia, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Nepal, New Zealand, Pakistan, the Philippines and Vietnam discussed prospects for increasing the participation of Asia in the ICC system.

Asian Parliamentarians Consultation on the Universality of the ICC

Parliamentarians for Global Action (PGA), together with the Philippines Coalition for the ICC and the Coalition for the ICC (CICC), Asia and the Pacific organized an Asian Parliamentarians Consultation on the Universality of the International Criminal Cou

Publication

Parliamentary Kit on the International Criminal Court
Parliamentary Kit on the International Criminal Court

Parliamentary Kit on the International Criminal Court

It is imperative that the Rome Statute be ratified universally for the successful functioning of the Court. Parliamentarians should ensure that the ICC is truly universal.

Description

Created by the Rome Statute, the International Criminal Court (ICC) is the first permanent and independent international court capable of investigating and bringing to justice individuals who commit the most serious violations of international criminal law, international humanitarian law, and human rights.

The Rome Statute defines the crimes under the Court’s jurisdiction and provides the general principles and procedures for the operation of the Court. It also outlines the cooperation obligations of its State Parties. It is imperative that the Rome Statute be ratified universally for the successful functioning of the Court. Parliamentarians should ensure that the ICC is truly universal.

PDF(s)

Additional Details

  • Publication Type: Toolkit
  • Author(s): Parliamentarians for Global Action

Publication

Handbook for Parliamentarians: National Nomination of Judicial Candidates for the International Criminal Court (ICC)
Handbook for Parliamentarians: National Nomination of Judicial Candidates for the International Criminal Court (ICC)

Handbook for Parliamentarians: National Nomination of Judicial Candidates for the International Criminal Court (ICC)

Description

The ICC is the first and only permanent independent court with the mandate to investigate and prosecute individuals responsible for committing international crimes, namely genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes, and the crime of aggression. Its 18 judges from around the world, elected for a nine-year term, play a key role in ensuring this expectation is lived up to through their primary mandate to render authoritative and high-quality jurisprudence and guarantee fair trials.

Therefore, the quality of the judges has fundamental importance to the performance, efficiency, and effectiveness of the ICC, which is at the heart of the long-term success of the ICC and the Rome Statute system as a whole. In this handbook, PGA sets forth specific criteria and recommendations for Parliamentarians to encourage their governments to improve national nomination procedures for ICC judicial candidates and adopt good practices and requirements to ensure these processes are fair, transparent, and merit-based. The goal of robust nomination procedures is to ensure that only candidate judges or jurists of the highest caliber make it on the ballot.

PDF(s)

Additional Details

  • Publication Type: Handbook
  • Author(s): Parliamentarians for Global Action

Publication

Handbook: Ratification and Implementation of the Kampala Amendments on the Crime of Aggression to the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court
Handbook: Ratification and Implementation of the Kampala Amendments on the Crime of Aggression to the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court

Handbook: Ratification and Implementation of the Kampala Amendments on the Crime of Aggression to the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court

Description

It is our honor and privilege to present to you the Third Edition of the Handbook on the Ratification and Implementation of the Kampala Amendments on the Crime of Aggression to the Rome Statute of the ICC.

It is the product of our collaborative effort aimed at assisting States in ratifying the amendments adopted by consensus in Kampala and helping criminalize the most serious forms of the illegal use of force.

PDF(s)

Additional Details

  • Publication Type: Handbook
  • Author(s): Permanent Mission of the Principality of Liechtenstein to the United Nations; Global Institute for the Prevention of Aggression; Liechtenstein Institute on Self-Determination at Princeton University (LISD); (Drafting Assistance by PGA)