Duterte asks ICC not to decide on interim release request yet after saying it's a 'matter of urgency'
Former president Rodrigo Duterte's camp asked the International Criminal Court's pre-trial chamber not to decide yet on its request for interim release last June despite calling it a "matter of urgency" at the time.
In a six-page redacted document dated July 18, his lawyers requested the pre-trial chamber "to suspend its adjudication of the request for interim release until such time as the Defence has assembled all information necessary."
Though there were a lot of missing contexts, Duterte's camp argued that when it made the interim release request on June 12, its urgency was dictated by a party's failure to provide vital information. It also mentioned seeking to obtain something "for some time"... "over the course of two months."
It noted exchanging over 20 emails with a certain entity since May 19, but discovered something in the information provided "a few days ago."
Duterte's camp also claimed that the prosecution committed a "mischaracterization."
"A highly prejudicial situation has thus been created, by which Mr Duterte is unable to challenge a Prosecution assertion," it said.
"As a matter of fairness, therefore, the PreTrial Chamber must receive all pertinent information on [REDACTED] before rendering its decision, especially since [REDACTED] can be of relevance to interim release," it added.
In response, ICC Deputy Prosecutor Mame Mandiaye Niang asked the pre-trial chamber to reject the Duterte camp's request, arguing that it found itself in the situation where it is unable to substantiate assertions made in its own "entirely due to the Defence’s choice to file prematurely."
"The Defence had full control over when it filed its Request for Interim Release and chose to do so in reliance on an incomplete [REDACTED]," Niang said. "The Defence submitted that the issue of interim release needed to be resolved urgently, to the extent that it requested that the Chamber reduce the Prosecution’s time limit to respond. In a complete reversal, the Defence now asks the Chamber, again on an urgent basis, not to rule on its Request for Interim Release."
Niang said Duterte's camp "should not now be entitled to delay the adjudication of this matter simply so that it can supplement its original submission."
He also pointed out that even if the pre-trial chamber denies Duterte's request for interim release, their camp "will have the opportunity in the future to renew its application should it have good cause to do so pursuant to the terms of article 60(3) of the Statute."
In a 16-page filing dated June 12, Duterte's lawyer Nicholas Kaufman said an ICC member-state, the name of which was redacted, had "expressed to the Defence its advance and principled agreement to receive Mr. Duterte onto its territory for the term of his interim release and will act, in accordance with its domestic law, to implement such conditions as deemed appropriate by Pre-Trial Chamber I."
Kaufman noted that Duterte "is not a flight risk, and custody is not necessary to ensure his appearance before the Court."
Kaufman acknowledged that it's the Pre-Trial Chamber I's decision to set the terms of the would-be interim release, though he said they're making the following additional submissions: Duterte will not abscond; Duterte will not imperil proceedings if released; Duterte will not continue to commit crimes; and humanitarian factors militate in favor of interim release.
Duterte has been at the ICC since March 12.
He was arrested at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport on March 11 following a warrant of arrest issued by the ICC via the International Criminal Police Organization.
He has been accused of being an "indirect co-perpetrator for the crime against humanity of murder pursuant to Article 7 (1)(a) of the Roman Statute."
Specifically, he was allegedly involved in the murder of at least 19 persons reported to be drug pushers or thieves who were killed by members of the Davao Death Squad in various locations in or around Davao City between 2011 and 2016, as well as the murder of at least 24 alleged criminals who were killed by or under the supervision of members of the Philippines law enforcement at various locations in the country between 2016 and 2019 during his term as president.
He could be the first Asian former head of state to be indicted by the ICC.
His pre-trial hearing is on Sept. 23, 2025. If the charges against him are confirmed, it could be months before the case eventually goes on trial, and years before a final judgment is rendered.
