INQUIRER FILE PHOTO
MANILA, Philippines — The meeting between some Philippine senators and members of the European Parliament on Wednesday got “so intense” when the issue of a resolution defending former President Rodrigo Duterte from International Criminal Court (ICC) was raised.
This is according to Senator Ronald “Bato” Dela Rosa, who was present during the meeting held at the Philippine Senate.
“The discussion was so intense that I can’t leave. I have to defend our sovereignty,” Dela Rosa said, explaining his late arrival in another hearing in the chamber.
“These Europeans they are trying to impose their standards upon us. There was one EU parliament member from Spain, nagalit sya dahil bakit daw si Senator Estrada ay nag sponsor, nag author ng resolution protecting (former) President Duterte from the ICC investigation,” he said.
(These Europeans they are trying to impose their standards upon us. There was one EU parliament member from Spain who got mad why Senator Estrada sponsored, authored a resolution protecting (former) President Duterte from the ICC investigation)
Dela Rosa was referring to Senator Jinggoy Estrada who has recently filed a resolution, opposing ICC’s investigation on the alleged crimes against humanity committed during the time of Duterte.
Both Duterte and Dela Rosa, who spearheaded the bloody war against illegal drugs as then head of the Philippine National Police, were charged before the ICC.
“Nag react sya, medyo tumaas ang boses nya. Sinagot ko naman sya: You know my good friend, honorable Spaniard, the Philippines was conquered, ruled and enslaved by the Spaniards for more than three centuries, for over 300 years and now that we have gained our freedom, we have our own sovereignty as a nation, [and] we hope that other countries would respect our sovereignty as a nation.”
Dela Rosa said he also wanted to tell the EU lawmakers that despite being in the Philippines for more than three centuries, the Spaniards still “failed” to conquer the Muslim Mindanao.
“Pero nainis na lang ako, umalis na ako… (I got pissed so I just left)” the senator said.
But the head of the EU delegation, Hannah NeuMann, contradicted Dela Rosa’s claim, saying their meeting was “more constructive than tense.”
“I would say it was not tense, but it was open and critical discussion that in the end [it] was more constructive than tense,” Neumann, vice-chairperson of the EU subcommittee on human rights, told reporters after the meeting.
Like Neumann, Senator Francis Tolentino also considered their meeting “fruitful.”
“Nagkaroon man ng dialogue na hindi naman mainitan, naipaliwanag natin yung ating position and we’d like to thank the EU’s delegation here, as well as some of our colleagues, for that constructive dialogue which is a step in the right direction,” said Tolentino, who headed the Philippine delegation as chairman of the Senate committee on justice and human rights.
(While there was a dialogue, it was not intense. We’re able to explain our position and we’d like to thank the EU’s delegation here as well as some of our colleagues for that constructive dialogue which is a step in the right direction)
