Lawyer Says Former Pres. Rodrigo Duterte “Weaker, Frailer, and Grayer”
RODRIGO DUTERTE – British-Israeli lawyer Nicholas Kaufman claimed that the former President collapsed twice while he was detained under the International Criminal Court (ICC).
Ahead of the confirmation of charges hearing which started today, February 23, former Pres. Duterte penned a letter to the ICC as he waived his right to personally appear at the hearing. According to him, he does not recognize the jurisdiction of the foreign court over him.
Duterte also claimed in his letter that he is weak and frail. According to the former President, he has accepted that he might die in prison but his heart is in the Philippines. He also asked the court to respect his peace inside the cell where he was placed.
The ICC allowed former Pres. Rodrigo Duterte to skip the confirmation of charges hearing. At the legal proceedings, he will be represented by his lawyer, Nicholas Kaufman, and six (6) Filipino lawyers who were recently added to the ICC legal team of the former President.
The Duterte family recently expressed their gratitude to the Filipino lawyers who were added to the ICC legal team of the former President to ensure that he is represented by Filipino lawyers before the foreign court. They are the following:
- Salvador Medialdea
- Martin Delgra III
- Silvestre Bello III
- Alfredo Lim Jr.
- Caesar Dulay
- Salvador Panelo
The Duterte siblings were taking turn in visiting former Pres. Rodrigo Duterte inside the ICC detention facility in The Hague, Netherlands since March 2025 when his custody was transferred to the ICC. There was only one time when all four (4) children of the former President were allowed to visit him altogether as per his request.
Recently, the lawyer of former Pres. Rodrigo Duterte, Nicholas Kaufman, spoke about the former Chief Executive. The British-Israeli Lawyer claimed that the former President allegedly collapsed twice while in ICC detention.
“He is frail and has collapsed twice while in detention… He is considerably weaker, frailer, and grayer. We are not presenting him publicly just for demonstration,” Kaufman said.
In an interview with ABS-CBN News, lawyer Nicholas Kaufman claimed that they will counter the evidence that will be presented against former Pres. Rodrigo Duterte. According to him, they do not have to prove the innocence of the former Chief Executive.
“He is innocent and I 100% believe because the evidence that has been brought against him doesn’t make out the prosecution case against him. And I believe that when he made those speeches, he didn’t make them with criminal intent,” the British-Israeli Lawyer said.