MANILA – The International Criminal Court (ICC) on Thursday confirmed all charges against former Philippine leader Rodrigo Duterte, who has been arrested in The Hague on charges related to his brutal drug war that has left thousands dead.
Duterte faces three counts of crimes against humanity in connection with 49 incidents of killings, with 78 victims. The number is just a representation of the total deaths of suspected drug addicts and dealers during his six-year presidency that ended in 2022.
“The Chamber finds that there are substantial reasons to believe that Mr. Duterte is criminally responsible for the crimes charged in Counts 1-3 as an indirect accomplice, and/or for ordering and/or inciting, and/or aiding and abetting the commission of the crimes, based on Articles 25(b) of the Criminal Code (b)'(b)'(b)'(a),” the pre-trial chamber said in its decision.
The ICC, in a brief briefing explaining the decision, said the judges based the decision on the evidence presented. “These crimes were allegedly committed as part of a widespread and systematic attack against a civilian population in the territory of the Republic of the Philippines,” from November 2011 to March 2019, the court said.
Duterte, who has repeatedly told police under his presidency to “kill, kill, kill” suspects if they put up a fight during drug raids, does not have the “automatic right” to appeal the decision, but his lawyers can choose to do so, the court said.
He would then have to appear before the ICC, which has not yet set a date for the actual trial. 539 relatives of those who died in his war on drugs have been granted permission to attend the trial.
Ritz Lee Santos III, the Philippine director of rights group Amnesty International, said the ICC’s confirmation of charges against Duterte was a “historic moment” for international justice.
“It sends a clear message that those suspected of having committed widespread and systematic killing as a crime against humanity will one day find themselves in the dock, facing trial. Justice may be slow in coming, but it cannot be delayed forever,” Santos said.
“This trial is not about politics. It is about a campaign in which thousands of people were killed in cold blood and a justice system in the Philippines that has repeatedly failed them,” he said.
For the families of drug war victims, the ruling “affirms that their voices have been heard and their persistence is not in vain,” Santos said, adding that he hoped the court ruling signaled that years of impunity in the Southeast Asian nation were coming to an end.
“The ICC must now ensure the rights of victims to participate in the trial and ensure that witnesses are protected so that the trial can decide on the charges facing Duterte. Meanwhile, efforts must stop at nothing to ensure that all those who are individually responsible for crimes under international law and grave human rights violations are held accountable, whether in the Philippines or at the ICC,” he said.
House of Representatives member Leila de Lima, Duterte’s main foe who was previously arrested by his government, told Asia Times that the decision should have been made long ago.
“The wheels of justice should not have taken so long to turn. But we take what we face for the sake of the rule of law,” said de Lima, a former human rights commissioner who investigated alleged killings by Duterte when he was mayor of the southern city of Davao.
“This is still a great day for the fighters against impunity and state-sponsored violence. Today we celebrate even as we grieve for those lost to Duterte’s madness,” she said.
Duterte, who turned 81 in March, had earlier waived his right to attend in person the hearings that led to Thursday’s decision. He questioned the ICC’s jurisdiction over his person and claimed that he was “forced onto a plane and handed over” to The Hague in violation of the Philippines’ sovereignty.
He called the allegations against him “a wild lie” allegedly perpetrated by his political opponents over the years. However, the killings were duly documented by the press, and in many cases, Duterte often praised the police and urged them to shoot the suspects instead of being shot themselves.
In December, the Supreme Court of the Philippines upheld the murder convictions of three officers who were found guilty of executing 17-year-old student Kian Lloyd delos Santos, who witnesses said was shot to death near a piggery while pleading for his life. Cops had told the court the boy resisted arrest and fought back, leading to his shooting, a story witnesses rejected.
Duterte’s case is closely followed here, where his daughter, Sara Duterte, is President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s vice president. The two families joined forces to carve out the two highest offices in the country, but the strategic alliance later turned into a feud.
Sara Duterte stepped aside to become Marcos’ deputy, but she has been accused of corruption. She is also accused of threatening to kill Marcos, his wife and his cousin.
The dispute is expected to continue to reach boiling point as both sides prepare for the next round of presidential elections two years from now.
Sara Duterte has declared her intention to contest the polls and Marcos has yet to choose a candidate to succeed her. In the Philippines, a president has only a six-year term.
Jason Gutierrez was head of Philippine news at BenarNews, an online news service affiliated with Radio Free Asia (RFA), a Washington-based news organization covering many under-reported countries in the region. A veteran foreign correspondent, he has also worked with The New York Times and Agence France-Presse (AFP).
