Senator Ronald “Bato” Dela Rosa’s camp on Monday insisted that he is not a “fugitive from justice,” contrary to the statement of the Office of the Solicitor General (OSG) regarding the arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC).
In a 117-page reply filed before the Supreme Court (SC), Dela Rosa’s legal team, led by lawyer Israelito Torreon, argued that the senator remains in the Philippines, continues to publicly invoke the jurisdiction of the SC, and “has not rendered himself permanently unavailable to Philippine authorities.”
The camp maintained that Dela Rosa is questioning the ICC’s jurisdiction and the legality of enforcing its processes in the Philippines, including the arrest warrant against him. Because of this, his lawyers said he cannot be considered a fugitive while the validity of the warrant remains under legal challenge.
They also stressed that no local court in the Philippines has issued a warrant of arrest against the senator, saying he therefore has no legal obligation to surrender.
The OSG, headed by Solicitor General Darlene Marie Berberabe, earlier told the SC that Dela Rosa is a “fugitive from justice” allegedly manipulating the legal system to evade an international arrest warrant issued by the ICC on Nov. 6, 2025.
According to the OSG, a fugitive includes a person who deliberately avoids the enforcement of the law, which it linked to Dela Rosa’s alleged efforts to evade arrest.
However, Dela Rosa’s camp denied that claim, saying the senator has not gone into hiding, has not left the country, and continues to attend public gatherings and legal proceedings.
“We wish to make clear that this case is not about evading accountability, avoiding legal process, or placing any person above the law; rather, it is about upholding the Constitution and ensuring that any attempt to deprive a Filipino citizen of liberty is done only through lawful process, under Philippine law, and with the prior intervention of Philippine courts,” the legal team said.
The lawyers added that “an international process, standing alone, cannot automatically operate as a Philippine warrant of arrest,” and argued that no Filipino should be arrested, surrendered, transferred, or removed from Philippine territory without clear domestic legal authority and full compliance with constitutional safeguards.
They also urged government institutions to “uphold the Constitution, respect the rule of law, and protect Philippine sovereignty,” saying accountability must be pursued through lawful means.
“At stake in this case is not merely the liberty of one person, but the constitutional protection owed to every Filipino who may be subjected to foreign or international process; and for that reason, we respectfully ask that the rule of law prevail, that our courts be allowed to perform their constitutional duty, and that no Filipino be deprived of liberty except by due process of law,” the camp added.
In his petition before the SC, Dela Rosa asked the high court to immediately issue a temporary restraining order (TRO) or status quo ante order against the implementation of any ICC-related arrest process against him.
In his reply, the senator also sought to bar the Department of Justice (DOJ), Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG), National Bureau of Investigation (NBI), Philippine National Police (PNP), Presidential Council on Transnational Crime (PCTC), former senator Antonio Trillanes IV, and others acting under their authority from arresting, detaining, transferring, surrendering, or removing him from the Philippines based on the ICC warrant, an Interpol Red Notice or Diffusion, PCTC communications, foreign or international requests, or executive directives without a valid warrant issued by a Philippine court.
Dela Rosa further asked the SC to prohibit authorities from entering, remaining in, or returning to the Senate to arrest, detain, monitor, or remove him or any sitting senator without a local court warrant.
The senator argued that his rights and duties as a lawmaker should not be impeded, including his ability to enter the Senate, attend sessions, vote, participate in deliberations, and perform legislative functions.
Aside from the TRO, Dela Rosa also asked the SC to issue a writ of preliminary injunction and eventually a permanent injunction related to the reliefs he sought.
Dela Rosa left the Senate before dawn on May 14 following a shooting incident inside the Senate premises on the night of May 13.
Despite this, Senate President Alan Peter Cayetano said the senator did not “escape” because there was no local warrant of arrest against him.
Dela Rosa’s camp continues to seek a TRO and other injunctive reliefs from the SC to stop the implementation of the ICC warrant and prevent any arrest against the senator.
