Former Pres. Rodrigo Duterte Refuses To Recognize ICC Jurisdiction Anew
RODRIGO DUTERTE – The former President once again waived his right to appear before the legal proceedings of the International Criminal Court (ICC).
Former Pres. Duterte is under the custody of the ICC in The Hague, Netherlands since March 2025 as he is accused of alleged crimes against humanity. The allegations against the former Chief Executive stemmed from his controversial drug war during his tenure.
The ICC rejected the appeal of Duterte for an interim release. Previously, Vice Pres. Sara Duterte claimed that a third country has allegedly agreed to host the interim release of the former President in case the foreign court grants the plea of her father.
Former Pres. Rodrigo Duterte waived his right to personally appear at the ICC hearing over his appeal for an interim release. He was represented by his lawyer, Nicholas Kaufman.
Kaufman previously claimed that former Pres. Duterte is allegedly unfit to stand trial. The British-Israeli Lawyer claimed that the former Chief Executive could allegedly hardly remember places, events, and even close members of his family. It prompted the foreign court to postpone the confirmation of charges hearing.
According to the Duterte family, they accept the ICC ruling on their patriarch’s interim release appeal with open hearts. The Duterte siblings are taking turns in visiting the former President inside the ICC detention facility in The Hague.
Recently, the International Criminal Court cited its ruling on former Pres. Rodrigo Duterte’s fitness based on the assessment of three (3) medical experts that were appointed to check the former Chief Executive. The ICC ruled that Duterte is fit to stand pre-trial proceedings.
Immediately after the said decision was out, the ICC set a new schedule for the confirmation of charges hearing of former Pres. Rodrigo Duterte. The foreign court has scheduled it to begin on February 23 until February 27. All hearings are set to begin at 10:00 a.m. and there will be three (3) sessions in every hearing along with 30-minute and 90-minute breaks.
Ahead of the said schedule for the confirmation of the charges hearing of former Pres. Rodrigo Duterte, the camp of the former Chief Executive submitted a letter to the ICC informing the court of his decision to waive his right to personally appear at the hearing. Based on a report on ABS-CBN News, the former President reiterated his continued refusal of the jurisdiction of the foreign court over him.
“I do not recognize the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court over my person… I am a Filipino citizen forcibly pushed into a jet and renditioned to the Hague in the Netherlands in flagrant contravention of my country’s Constitution and of national sovereignty,” Duterte stated in the letter.
Furthermore, based on the report, former Pres. Rodrigo Duterte also stated in his letter to the ICC that he does not want to follow the legal proceedings from outside the courtroom and “attend legal proceedings that I will forget within minutes”.
“I am old, tired and frail. I wish for this Court to respect my peace inside the cell it has placed me. I have accepted the fact that I could die in prison, but those that desire this fate for me should know that my heart and soul will always remain with the Philippines,” the former President wrote.
Previously, former Pres. Rodrigo Duterte has requested the ICC to disqualify three (3) Filipino lawyers who are representing the victims.