MAKABAYAN bloc senatorial candidates France Castro (PL, Alliance of Concerned Teachers) and Arlene Brosas (PL, Gabriela) yesterday called on the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) to block the application of former presidential spokesperson Harry Roque for political asylum in The Netherlands.
The two lawmakers said the DFA should coordinate with the Dutch government to ensure that the latter does not offer safe harbor to a defender of the Duterte regime’s brutal war on drugs.
“We, the Makabayan bloc in Congress, strongly condemn former presidential spokesperson Harry Roque’s shameless attempt to escape accountability by seeking asylum in the Netherlands while having no legitimate role in the ICC proceedings against former president Rodrigo Duterte,” Castro and Brosas said in a statement.
Castro and Brosas were referring to the announcement of Vice President Sara Duterte that Roque has been dropped from the legal team that is handling the former president’s defense against a charge for crimes against humanity before the International Criminal Court (ICC).
Castro and Brosas challenged Roque’s eligibility to be granted asylum by a foreign government, noting that from being a human rights lawyer, he became a mouthpiece for the Duterte administration justifying the brutal application of police power against the poor during the drug war.
They called Roque’s asylum bid a “cowardly maneuver” and “a clear attempt to evade the warrant of arrest issued against him by the House of Representatives” after he was cited in contempt for failing to fulfill his commitment to submit documents regarding his alleged involvement in the Lucky South 99 Philippine offshore gaming operations (POGO) in Porac, Pampanga.
They stressed that a fugitive should not be allowed to exploit legal technicalities to evade accountability in his home country.
“The hypocrisy is astounding. Roque, who once defended human rights victims, later became the mouthpiece justifying the bloody drug war, and is now attempting to escape scrutiny for his alleged ties to illegal POGO operations,” they said.
Congress is investigating how Roque and his wife were able to flee the country while subject of an ongoing inquiry in relation to illegal POGO activities and for allegedly amassing unexplained wealth.
“Mr. Roque, if you have a clear conscience, there is no need for you to go into hiding. You should face the allegations leveled against you instead of holing up aboard. You don’t need asylum but a dose of courage to face the truth,” Brosas said
She said the DFA should petition The Netherlands to facilitate the immediate return and turnover of Roque to the Philippine government so he can be held in custody until the conclusion of the congressional inquiry.
Taguig City Rep. Amparo Maria Zamora said Roque is seeking refuge under the pretense of supporting Duterte.
“Tutal hindi ka naman pala magiging abogado ng dating pangulo, Harry, umuwi ka na at harapin mo ang mga kaso mo dito sa ating bansa (Since you’ll no longer be a legal counsel of the former president, Harry, go home and face the cases here in our country),” she said. “Hindi mo matatakasan ang batas sa pamamagitan ng pagpunta sa ibang bansa (You can’t escape the law by going to another country). Suddenly appearing out of hiding to join the ICC proceedings isn’t heroism — it’s pure political theater.”
Zamora said Roque’s asylum application is “a desperate attempt to evade accountability,” laughing off his claims of political persecution as baseless.
“Ang paghingi ng asylum ay hindi dapat gamitin para takasan ang pananagutan (Requesting for political asylum cannot be used to escape accountability),” she said. “Kung talagang inosente ka, bakit kailangan mong magtago? (If you’re really innocent, why the need to hide?)”
“Harry Roque owes it to the Filipino people to return home and face the music. Only then can justice truly prevail, free from opportunistic grandstanding abroad,” she said. – With Wendell Vigilia
