MANILA — Sen. Panfilo Lacson said the Senate’s “protective custody” over Sen. Ronald dela Rosa would no longer be justified once a Philippine court orders his surrender to the International Criminal Court, unless the Supreme Court of the Philippines intervenes.

In a statement posted on X, Lacson said domestic court orders must prevail in implementing international arrest warrants.

“Senate protective custody: legal or not, it cannot be justified anymore when a domestic court issues an order to surrender Senator de la Rosa to the jurisdiction of the ICC, unless the Supreme Court restrains or reverses the order,” he said.

Lacson also urged dela Rosa, a former subordinate of his at the Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Task Force, to make use of all legal remedies available to him.

He recalled his own experience in the early 2010s when he went into hiding while facing arrest, saying he relied on the Supreme Court ruling in Miranda v. Tuliao that allowed an accused to file certain motions even without being under custody of the law.

According to Lacson, that ruling has since been superseded by a newer Supreme Court decision limiting those rights.

He also stressed the need to respect the authority of Philippine courts in relation to requests from the ICC.

“International warrant yan, bound tayo ng treaty pero kailangang bigyan natin ng pagpapahalaga ang domestic court. So may international warrant, kailangan dalhin muna natin sa local court na siyang mag-i-issue kung ano ang authorization or subsequent warrant of arrest para ipatupad ang arrest warrant na in-issue ng ICC (In the case of an international warrant, we are bound by a treaty but we still must respect our domestic courts. So in the case of the ICC, it must be brought to a local court that will issue an appropriate authorization or warrant allowing the enforcement of the ICC warrant),” he said in an interview on DZBB radio.

Meanwhile, Lacson said he would seek clarification on Senate Resolution 395, which he signed along with Sens. Francis Pangilinan, Vicente Sotto III, Risa Hontiveros, and Benigno Aquino IV.

The resolution urged dela Rosa to “voluntarily surrender” and “seek judicial remedies in accordance with the Philippine Constitution and applicable laws and rules.”

“My understanding of the proposed Senate resolution is for Sen. dela Rosa to voluntarily surrender after seeking and exhausting all judicial remedies but failing to get judicial relief. I will have this matter further clarified during the interpolation and amendment of the proposed resolution,” Lacson said.