Philippine officials’ ‘crimes against humanity’ case against China rejected by international court

China’s purported crimes happened outside Philippine territory, the International Criminal Court found, meaning it does not have jurisdiction

Albert del Rosario and Conchita Carpio-Morales, the former officials who filed the case, have vowed to fight on however

2-MIN READ2-MIN

China's President Xi Jinping claps as he listens to Russian President Vladimir Putin. Photo: EPA

Published: 10:33am, 6 Dec 2019Updated: 10:36pm, 6 Dec 2019

The International Criminal Court has ruled it has no jurisdiction over a case filed by two former Philippine officials alleging China committed “crimes against humanity” in pursuing its vast claims in the South China Sea, a report from the court showed on Thursday.

In its “Report on Preliminary Examination Activities 2019”, the court based in The Hague said it lacks “territorial and personal jurisdiction” to tackle the case, reasoning that the purported crimes happened outside Philippine territory.

“The information available confirms that the alleged conduct in question occurred in areas that are outside of the Philippines’ territorial sea”, the report said, adding that maritime zones outside a country’s territorial sea are not considered part of its territory.

The case was filed before the court on March 21 by former Philippine Foreign Secretary Albert del Rosario and former corruption court Ombudsman Conchita Carpio-Morales.

Former Philippine Foreign Secretary Albert del Rosario, left, and former chief anti-corruption prosecutor Conchita Carpio-Morales. Photo: AP

They accused China of excluding Philippine nationals from making use of the resources in parts of the South China Sea, such as blocking Filipino fishermen’s access to traditional fishing grounds at Scarborough Shoal, while also engaging in massive illegal reclamation and artificial island-building in the Spratly Islands, causing significant damage to the marine life in the area.

They said Beijing has also tolerated and actively supported illegal and harmful fishing practices by Chinese nationals, which likewise has caused serious environmental damage.