ICC Prosecution opposes Duterte's bid to appeal charges

The International Criminal Court (ICC) Prosecution has sought the denial of former President Rodrigo Duterte’s request to appeal the ruling that confirmed his charges for alleged killings during his time as Davao mayor and as president.

In a 12-page document dated May 4, the Prosecution told the Pre-Trial Chamber I that Duterte’s defense team “misinterprets and expresses its mere disagreement” and that their request did not identify any appealable issues.

“The Prosecution respectfully requests that Pre-Trial Chamber I reject the Defence’s request for leave to appeal the Decision on the confirmation of charges against Mr. Rodrigo Roa Duterte,” it said.

According to the Prosecution, the defense submitted that the Chamber erred by failing to define the parameters of the charges, arguing that the decision did not identify the facts and circumstances underlying the charges or explain how they were demarcated.

However, the Prosecution believed that this is based upon a misrepresentation of the decision and is not an appealable issue.

The Prosecution said the Chamber identified the scope of the charges and explained how it arrived at its conclusion.

“In fact, the Chamber solicited additional submissions from the parties on this issue, considered arguments in detail, and clearly articulated its findings with respect to the scope of the charges in the Decision,” it said.

Aside from this, the Prosecution also opposed the defense’s argument that the Chamber committed a legal error by failing to articulate a reasoned evidentiary basis for confirming the charges.

For the Prosecution, the Chamber properly linked its findings to references in evidence as it referenced witnesses and other forms of evidentiary materials throughout the decision.

The Prosecution reiterated the Chamber’s remark that it would only refer to items of evidence that it considers necessary to show its line of reasoning.

“This is consistent with the approach taken in recent confirmation decisions of this Court and in line with the purpose of confirmation proceedings more broadly, that is, to decide whether the case presented by the Prosecution is sufficiently established to warrant a trial,” it said.

“The Defence thus misrepresents the Decision in this respect and fails to demonstrate an appealable issue,” it added.

According to the Prosecution, there is also no issue of fairness as all evidence and arguments raised by Duterte’s defense team will be addressed by the Trial Chamber.

The Prosecution also said that the defense failed to demonstrate that the immediate resolution of the issues it raised will materially advance the proceedings.

Defense’s disparaging statements

It also said that the defense’s concern to dispel doubts on the validity of the decision lacks credibility, citing interviews where the defense made “false and disparaging statements about this Court and its judges.”

“Defense Counsel participated in several media interviews in which he plainly stated that the Court is a partisan political body. He further stated that the Judges of the Court issue biased decisions motivated by their desire to generate work for themselves and justify the Court’s budget,” it said.

The Prosecution said it believes that the remarks appear to be designed to “denigrate and undermine the legitimacy” of the Chamber’s decisions.

“Defense Counsel has already been reminded—on two occasions—of his obligations under the Code of Conduct by this Chamber. Despite this, he continues to exhibit a pattern of deplorable conduct in relation to the public statements he makes about this case and the Judges of this Court,” it said.

“These comments undermine the legitimacy of the Court and contribute to the significant disinformation campaign surrounding this case in the Philippines,” it added.

The Prosecution said that former Chief Presidential Legal Counsel Salvador Panelo repeated the same talking points to Philippine media.

In April, the ICC Presidency constituted the Trial Chamber that will hear the case of the former president.

Meanwhile, the common legal representatives of the victims (CLRV) have also objected to Duterte’s request to be allowed to appeal. — RSJ, GMA News