FORMER Supreme Court Senior Associate Justice Antonio Carpio said Tuesday that constitutional immunity from arrest for members of Congress does not apply in cases involving crimes punishable by more than six years of imprisonment.
He issued the statement amid questions on the International Criminal Court (ICC) arrest warrant issued against Sen. Ronald Dela Rosa.
Carpio explained that under the Constitution, senators and other lawmakers are protected from arrest while Congress is in session, except for offenses carrying a penalty exceeding six years.
“The provision states that no member of Congress can be arrested while Congress is in session unless for such crimes as may be punishable by a penalty of more than six years’ imprisonment,” Carpio said.
He noted that the charges linked to Dela Rosa involve crimes against humanity, which carry a maximum penalty of up to 40 years.
“That’s more than six years, so they can arrest him even while the Senate is in session,” he said.
However, Carpio stressed that a major legal issue remains unsettled: whether an ICC-issued arrest warrant can be directly enforced in the Philippines or must first be coursed through domestic courts.
“This is a murky issue. It will likely reach the Supreme Court,” he said, adding that one argument is that the term “warrant of arrest” under Philippine law refers to warrants issued by local courts, not by international tribunals.
“The ICC warrant is not from a local court,” he said.
Carpio pointed out that the Supreme Court has yet to definitively rule on the matter.
He recalled that in the case of former president Rodrigo Duterte, the aircraft transporting him to The Hague had already departed before the Court could act.
“If the Supreme Court rules that a warrant of arrest must be issued by a local court, then the ICC warrant cannot be implemented as is. The government would have to apply for a warrant from a local court,” he said.
Carpio added that should Dela Rosa refuse to voluntarily surrender, the case could become a landmark test that would finally settle the question before the Supreme Court.
