Months after it was postponed, the International Criminal Court (ICC) on Monday started a hearing to determine whether the charges of crimes against humanity against former Philippine president Rodrigo Duterte should proceed to a full-blown trial.
The war crimes court has granted the 80-year old’s request to skip the proceedings happening nearly a year since his detention at the ICC facility in The Hague, Netherlands, due to his anti-drug campaign that killed thousands.
“Former president Rodrigo Duterte’s long-awaited day in court is a significant step towards delivering justice for victims and survivors of his administration’s deadly so-called ‘war on drugs,’” Amnesty International secretary general Agnes Callamard said in a statement ahead of the hearing.
Illustration: Mountain People
The firebrand politician, who once vowed to kill 100,000 criminals and feed their bodies to the fish in Manila Bay, was surrendered by the administration of Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr to ICC custody in March last year as Marcos’ ties with the Duterte family broke down over political differences.
The hearing on the confirmation of charges against the ex-leader is taking place months after a previous schedule in September last year to find out whether he was fit to stand trial. The pre-trial chamber last month ruled that he was after three medical experts examined him.
Still, Duterte said he would skip the proceedings as he continues to reject the ICC’s jurisdiction over him, and that he’s “old, tired and frail.”
The Dutertes still enjoy a loyal following in the Southeast Asian nation of 113 million people and his ICC case remains a polarizing issue at home.
His daughter, Philippine Vice President Sara Duterte, who is facing multiple impeachment complaints over allegations of misuse of public funds and threatening to assassinate Marcos, last week declared her bid for the 2028 presidential election. Analysts say she is a strong contender to succeed Marcos, who is limited to a single six-year term under the constitution.
While this week’s hearing would put a spotlight on the drug war victims, it remains unclear how much it can sway public opinion in the Philippines where Rodrigo Duterte’s crackdown was popular and an ongoing corruption scandal continues to fuel public outrage.
“I don’t expect any shift of sympathy from people in places where support for the Duterte family is strong,” said Sol Iglesias, an associate professor of political science at the University of the Philippines. “If there are any sentiments that might soften, it is really more of people who are undecided.”
“The big issue right now is really the public anger over corruption,” Iglesias said.
The hearings are scheduled to be held daily this week — except Wednesday — and were to include the reading of the charges, as well as oral arguments from the prosecution and defense. The court allowed the drug war victims to participate through their lawyers.
“If the charges are confirmed, totally or partly, the case will be transferred to a Trial Chamber, which will conduct the subsequent phase of the proceedings: the trial,” the ICC said.
The chamber will issue its decision within 60 days after the hearing.
The charges against Rodrigo Duterte, who led the Philippines from 2016 to 2022, include crimes allegedly committed during his term as mayor of southern Davao City, where his “no-nonsense” approach to combating crime helped catapult him to the presidency.
The Philippines withdrew from the ICC during his leadership, but the court said it retains jurisdiction over crimes allegedly committed in the country while it was still a party to the Rome Statute.
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