THE HAGUE, Netherlands — International Criminal Court prosecutors will begin Monday laying out their case against former Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte, presenting evidence of his alleged role in numerous killings during his anti-narcotics campaigns.
The former president faces three charges of crimes against humanity related to lethal drug enforcement operations he directed both during his tenure as mayor of Davao in southern Philippines and throughout his presidency.
Advocacy organizations and victims’ families celebrated Duterte’s March arrest as progress toward accountability.
“We have waited for this for so long, for years we have waited, but we did not relent,” Llore Pasco said during a press briefing before the proceedings. She explained that her two sons departed for work in May 2017 and never came home, with their bullet-riddled bodies discovered later.
Monday’s proceedings represent a confirmation hearing rather than a full trial, providing prosecutors the opportunity to present their case before the court. Following review of the presented evidence, judges will have 60 days to determine whether to validate the charges.
Duterte has chosen not to participate in the Hague-based court proceedings. In a written statement to the judges, he declined to attend legal proceedings “that I will forget within minutes. I am old, tired, and frail.”
The former leader also dismissed the accusations as an “outrageous lie.”
Court officials determined last month that the elderly defendant was mentally competent for trial proceedings, after an earlier hearing was delayed due to health-related concerns.
Duterte’s allies have condemned current Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s administration for apprehending and transferring the former leader to a court whose authority they question. Critics include his daughter, current Vice President Sara Duterte, who declared her intention last week to run for president in 2028.
Sheerah Escudero expressed concern about potential consequences if another Duterte gains power. Her 18-year-old brother’s body was discovered bound with tape in 2017. “We know that the same policy of killings will continue,” she stated to media before the hearing.
ICC prosecutors announced in February 2018 their decision to launch a preliminary examination of the violent drug enforcement operations. Human rights advocates claim Duterte’s subsequent announcement that the Philippines would withdraw from the court was designed to avoid responsibility.
The court dismissed arguments from Duterte’s defense team seeking case dismissal based on jurisdictional challenges following Philippine withdrawal. Nations cannot “abuse” their withdrawal rights from the Rome Statute “by shielding persons from justice in relation to alleged crimes that are already under consideration,” according to the September ruling.
An appeal of that determination remains under review.
Death toll estimates from Duterte’s presidential period range from over 6,000 according to national police records to as many as 30,000 as claimed by human rights organizations.
