ICC Trial Chamber orders submissions on Rodrigo Duterte detention review

The International Criminal Court (ICC) Trial Chamber III has directed concerned parties to submit their observations on the continued detention of former president Rodrigo Duterte by May 8, following the confirmation of charges against him.

In an order dated May 1, the Chamber identified the parties as the Office of the Prosecutor, Duterte’s defense counsel, the Legal Representatives of the Victims, and the Office of the Public Counsel for Victims.

“The Chamber observes that, pursuant to the statutory framework, the Accused’s pre-trial detention shall be reviewed at least every 120 days,” the ICC said.

“In light of the developments following the annual hearing, the Chamber considers it necessary to give the parties and participants the opportunity to submit any observations they may have regarding the Accused’s continued detention or release, with or without conditions, including the existence of any changed circumstances,” it added.

Trial Chamber III is set to hold a status conference on May 27 on the crimes against humanity charges linked to Duterte’s war on illegal drugs.

The proceedings will be streamed on the ICC website with a 30-minute delay.

On April 23, the ICC confirmed charges of crimes against humanity against the 81-year-old Duterte.

The confirmed charges are:

• Count 1: Murder as a crime against humanity in Davao City during his mayoral tenure, involving at least 19 victims between 2013 and around June 2016, through indirect co-perpetration, ordering and/or inducing, and/or aiding and abetting;
• Count 2: Murder as a crime against humanity of “high-value targets” across the Philippines during his presidency, involving at least 14 victims between around July 2016 and July 2017, through indirect co-perpetration and/or ordering, inducing, or aiding and abetting; and
• Count 3: Murder and attempted murder as crimes against humanity in barangay clearance operations nationwide, involving at least 45 victims (43 killed and two injured) between around July 2016 and September 2018, through indirect co-perpetration, ordering and/or inducing, and/or aiding and abetting.

Duterte’s camp has sought permission from the ICC to appeal the Pre-Trial Chamber I’s decision confirming the charges.

In a filing dated April 29, defense counsel Nicholas Kaufman said the impugned decision raised two appealable issues.

The first concerns whether the Pre-Trial Chamber erred by adopting a “flexible approach” and broadly defining the scope of the charges.

The second questions whether the Chamber erred in law by failing to provide a reasoned evidentiary basis for confirming the charges.

Earlier, Pre-Trial Chamber I denied Duterte’s request for interim release in 2025 and ordered his continued detention in January 2026.

In February, it held the annual review hearing on his detention, where parties and participants submitted their observations.

Duterte was arrested in the Philippines on March 11, 2025 and has since been detained at the ICC Detention Centre in Scheveningen, The Hague, Netherlands.—MCG, GMA News