Judges in The Hague will inform the previous president of the crimes towards humanity he’s accused of getting dedicated.
The Philippines’ former President Rodrigo Duterte will make a primary look on the Worldwide Felony Court docket (ICC) to face prices of crimes towards humanity in The Hague over his lethal struggle on medication.
“The Chamber considers it acceptable for the primary look of Mr Duterte to happen on Friday, 14 March 2025 at 14:00 hours (13:00 GMT),” the court docket stated in a press release late on Thursday.
Duterte stands accused of the crime towards humanity of homicide over his years-long marketing campaign towards drug customers and sellers that rights teams stated killed as many as 30,000 folks.
The 79-year-old former chief was turned over by the Philippines to The Hague-based court docket on Wednesday, turning into the first-ever Asian chief to be charged earlier than the worldwide tribunal.
Through the listening to on Friday, Duterte will seem earlier than judges and be told of the crimes he’s alleged to have dedicated, in addition to his rights as a defendant.
As he landed within the Netherlands on Wednesday, the previous chief appeared to simply accept accountability for his actions, saying in a Fb video: “I’ve been telling the police, the navy, that it was my job and I’m accountable.”
Duterte’s swift arrest in Manila and turnover to the ICC got here amid a spectacular meltdown in relations between his household and the Marcos household, who had joined forces within the Philippines presidential elections in 2022 and gained in a landslide.
Present President Ferdinand Marcos and Vice President Sara Duterte – Rodrigo’s daughter – are at loggerheads, with the latter dealing with an impeachment trial over prices, together with an alleged assassination plot towards Marcos.
Sara Duterte is within the Netherlands to help her father, after labelling his arrest “oppression and persecution”.
Gilbert Andres, a lawyer representing victims of the drug struggle, stated Duterte’s arrest “is a good sign for worldwide felony justice. It implies that nobody is above the regulation.”
Chief Prosecutor Karim Khan additionally hailed Duterte’s arrest as a key second for victims and worldwide justice as an entire.
“It’s essential to underline, as we now begin a brand new stage of proceedings, that Mr Duterte is presumed harmless,” stated Khan.
