Progressive groups march on the police-barricaded Senate in Manila to push for the immediate trial and conviction of Vice President Sara Duterte, recently impeached by the House of Representatives, and to call for the arrest of Senator Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa to the International Criminal Court (ICC) on crimes against humanity charges.

Duterte and dela Rosa bear responsibility for state policies that devastated the peasantry and broader Filipino communities. Duterte’s role during the controversial anti-drug campaign, that have linked her tenure as Mayor in Davao City to thousands of extrajudicial deaths, and the multiple impeachment complaints citing misuse of public funds, unexplained wealth, and other abuses.

Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa, a former Philippine National Police chief and top enforcer of ex-President Rodrigo Duterte’s drug war, has had an ICC arrest warrant unsealed, accusing him of crimes against humanity tied to killings during the campaign. Even before his stint in the PNP, Dela Rosa has long been linked to counterinsurgency operations even before his rise to national office, including his involvement in the Tadtad vigilante cult in Mindanao, a notorious group used in counterinsurgency campaigns and attacks against farmers.

Farmers urge the Senate to heed the public outcry, convene the impeachment court without delay, and convict Sara Duterte. They also insisted that Bato dela Rosa be held accountable for his alleged role in state-sanctioned violence and that his case be taken up at The Hague. ###