Lawyer of Former Pres. Rodrigo Duterte Gives Closing Statement at ICC Confirmation of Charges Hearing
RODRIGO DUTERTE – The lawyer of the former President claimed that Duterte has accepted his fate and realizes that he might die in prison.
The confirmation of charges hearing of the case of former Pres. Duterte before the International Criminal Court (ICC) has reached its last session. The former President waived his right to personally appear at the court.
Previously, in his letter to the ICC as he waived his right to appear at the confirmation of charges hearing, former Pres. Duterte maintained that he does not recognize the jurisdiction of the foreign court over him. According to the former Chief Executive, he is old and frail and wants the foreign court to respect his peace in the cell which they put him in.
Former Pres. Rodrigo Duterte is represented by his lawyer, Nicholas Kaufman, at the confirmation of charges hearing. At the hearing, Kaufman insisted that Duterte is “innocent” from the accusations and claimed that there was allegedly no direct order from the then-President to kill drug suspects.
The Defense team also added six (6) Filipino lawyers to ensure that there are Filipino lawyers who represent former Pres. Duterte in his case before the ICC. Among the lawyers added to Duterte’s legal team were former Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea and former chief presidential legal counsel Salvador Panelo.
Previously, Vice Pres. Sara Duterte asked their supporters to just assume that the ICC is allegedly really imprisoning former Pres. Rodrigo Roa Duterte. She believes that the recent rulings of the foreign court allegedly shows that the end point is putting the former President behind the bars.
Since March 2025 when Duterte was arrested, the Duterte siblings were taking turns in visiting the former President inside the ICC detention facility in The Hague, Netherlands. Recently, Duterte’s lawyer, Nicholas Kaufman, delivered their camp’s closing statement at the confirmation of charges hearing.
Based on News5, lawyer Nicholas Kaufman claimed that former Pres. Rodrigo Duterte has accepted that he might die in prison. Based on the post, the British-Israeli Lawyer also shared how the former President wants to be remembered:
“I was a faithful servant of the people and that is how I wish to be remembered. I have now accepted my fate, and I realized that I could die in prison,” Kaufman said referring to Duterte’s statement.
Recently, Malacañang press officer undersecretary Claire Castro reacted to the statement of lawyer Nicholas Kaufman that he might visit the Philippines if she will invite him and they will talk about Duterte’s interim release.