Senate Concurrence in the Ratification of the Rome Statute

While the President has the sole authority to negotiate and enter into treaties, the
Constitution provides a limitation to his power by requiring the concurrence of 2/3 of all the
members of the Senate for the validity of the treaty entered into by him. 1 Section 21, Article
VII of the 1987 Constitution provides that "no treaty or international agreement shall be
valid and effective unless concurred in by at least two-thirds of all the Members of the
Senate."2
The Senate, on August 23, 2011, concurred in the ratification of the Rome Statute of the ICC,
through Resolution No. 5463—Resolution Concurring in the Ratification of the Rome Statute
of the International Criminal Court. It is stated in the Senate Resolution that the ratification
of the Rome Statute signifies the Philippine commitment to human rights and contribution
to an effective international criminal justice system.
The Senators who voted in favor of the resolution were: Miriam Defensor-Santiago Vicente
Sotto III, Jose Estrada, Francis Escudero, Francis Pangilinan, Panfilo Lacson, Gregorio Honasan,
Aquilino Pimentel III, Pia Cayetano, Alan Peter Cayetano, Edgardo Angara, Teofisto Guingona
III, Loren Legarda, Ramon Revilla Jr., Ferdinand “Bong-Bong” Marcos Jr. Antonio Trillanes IV
and Manny Villar, with only Senate President Juan Ponce-Enrile casting the dissenting vote.4
Enrile opined that the statute could be detrimental for the country’s security and that the ICC
could create a situation where “psychologically our military people will be impeded in their
effort to protect the safety, the peace and the interests of the Filipino people.” Enrile also
feared that incumbent Philippine leaders could lose their right to invoke their immunity from
suit before the international tribunal.5

Analysis of the Primary Source

The Philippine Senate Resolution No. 546 is considered as a primary source because it made
the ratification of the Rome Statute by the Executive Branch valid, without this Senate
concurrence, the Rome Statute will not form part of the law of the land. It has authoritative
value as it binds the Philippine government to conform to the terms and conditions of the
membership in the ICC.
The Senate, by concurring in the ratification of the Rome Statute, believes that the
membership in the ICC could help end impunity by holding any individual accountable for
the most serious crimes like genocide, war crimes, crimes against humanity, and crime of
aggression. It is an indication of the commitment of the Filipinos to improve and truly
achieve justice. With the membership in the ICC, which is an independent and impartial
international court, the offender will be prosecuted for the core crimes in case the

1
Pimentel Jr. v. Executive Secretary, G.R. No. 158088, July 6, 2005
2
CONST. Art. VII. Sec 21
3
P.S. Res. No. 546, 15th Cong. 2nd Regular Sess. (2011)
4
Maila Ager, Senate approve 2002 Rome Statute , August 23, 2011,
http://globalnation.inquirer.net/9977/senate-approves-2002-rome-statue (last accessed on May 13, 2018)
5
Ibid.
Philippine Courts cannot, for some reason, properly investigate and prosecute the offender
especially if it is a high-ranking government official. The ratification of the Philippines shows
support for the ICC in the discharge of its independent and impartial mandate in a
complementary6 manner with the States to ensure accountability and end impunity.
The Rome Statute was signed in 2000. With the help and tireless efforts and urging from the
human rights advocates and also from the Senate led by Senator Defensor-Santiago and
Senator Legarda to complete the ratification process, the Executive Branch finally ratified
and submitted the instrument to the Senate for concurrence in 2011. Senator Defensor-
Santiago, as Chair of the Foreign Relations Subcommittee, took a strong stance in urging its
fellow Senators to vote in favour of the Rome Statute. She believed that the Philippines will
greatly benefit from the mandate of the ICC in ending impunity for war crimes and that it
will prevent future atrocities.

Internet Source
The article entitled The Senate Approve 2002 Rome Statute from Inquirer is considered as
merely helpful as it provides for the other details not indicated in Resolution No. 546. It
provided the list of senators who voted in favour of the Rome statute and the reason as to
why Senator Enrile dissented.

6
Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, Principle of Complementarity under art. 17,
http://legal.un.org/icc/statute/99_corr/cstatute.htm (last accesed May 14, 2018)