Palace respects ICC’s confirming raps vs. Rodrigo Duterte

Malacañang on Thursday said it respects the decision of the International Criminal Court (ICC) confirming the charges of crimes against humanity against former President Rodrigo Duterte in connection with his campaign against illegal drugs.

‘We respect the ruling of ICC that confirms all charges of crimes against humanity against the former President Duterte,” Palace Press Officer Undersecretary Atty. Claire Castro told reporters.

“Hustisya ang kailangan makuha sa mga kasong ito. Parehong partido ang makikinabang rito. Hustisya para sa akusado kung walang sala o hustisya rin sa mga biktima kung naabuso naman ang kanilang karapatan,” she added.

(Justice must be served. Both camps will benefit from this. Justice for the accused if innocent, or justice for the victims of human rights violations.)

In a 50-page document, the ICC Pre-Trial Chamber I committed Duterte to face trial on the charges as confirmed. It also ordered the court registrar to transmit the decision confirmation of charges and the record of these proceedings.

The confirmed charges include the following:

• Count 1: Murder as a crime against humanity in Davao City during the Mayoral period of at least the 19 victims of Incidents 1 to 9, between 2013 and around June 2016, pursuant to articles 7(1)(a) and 25(3)(a) (indirect co-perpetration) and/or 25(3)(b) (ordering and/or inducing) and/or 25(3)(c) (aiding and abetting);
• Count 2: Murder as a crime against humanity of ‘High-Value Targets’ in locations across the Philippines during the Presidential period of at least the 14 victims of Incidents 10 to 14, between around July 2016 and July 2017, pursuant to articles 7(1)(a) and 25(3)(a) (indirect co-perpetration) and/or 25(3)(b) (ordering and/or inducing) and/or 25(3)(c) (aiding and abetting); and
• Count 3: Murder and attempted murder as crimes against humanity in barangay clearance operations in locations across the Philippines during the Presidential period of at least the 45 victims (43 murders and two attempted murders) of Incidents 15 to 49, between around July 2016 and September 2018, pursuant to articles 7(1)(a) and/or 25(3)(f) and 25(3)(a) (indirect co-perpetration) and/or 25(3)(b) (ordering and/or inducing) and/or 25(3)(c) (aiding and abetting).

Duterte is facing charges for crimes against humanity over war on illegal drugs. Government records showed that around 6,200 drug suspects were killed while human rights organizations say that numbers may reach up to 30,000 due to unreported related slays.

The former President was arrested in the Philippines and subsequently transferred to the ICC in March 2025.

Malacañang previously rejected Duterte’s claim that he was “kidnapped” by the Philippine government.

Earlier, President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. said due process was observed during Duterte’s arrest and that the Philippines only honored its commitment to the Interpol. — JMA, GMA News