Press Release
March 24, 2019

A POWERFUL TEMPLATE OF COURAGE, DOING WHAT THE PRESIDENT IS UNWILLING TO DO

*Akbayan Senator Risa Hontiveros on the filing of complaint against Chinese President Xi Jinping before the ICC

I would like to thank former Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert del Rosario and former Ombudsman Conchita Carpio-Morales for accomplishing what President Rodrigo Duterte is unwilling and unable to undertake: his job to safeguard and protect Philippine sovereignty and us Filipinos against China.In filing a case against Chinese President Xi Jinping before the International Criminal Court (ICC) regarding China's incursions in the West Philippine Sea, the complainants provided us with a powerful template of courage as we continue to assert our sovereignty in the West Philippine Sea. They clearly underscored the difference that can be made by standing up against foreign aggression instead of pursuing President Duterte's hollow and treacherous foreign policy.

As a woman, I would also like to highlight Ombudsman Carpio Morales's important part in the complaint. In the midst of the culture of sexism and misogyny promoted by no less than the President, her name in the complaint signifies once more women's strong and progressive leadership and proves that a woman of principles can do the job a toxic macho can't.

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