Despite his 79 years, Duterte connected to the court in The Hague, Netherlands via video link. His legal counsel informed the court of his client’s severe medical ailments.
Prosecutors charge Duterte with the formation and armament of death squads. These groups are allegedly responsible for the mass killings of drug dealers and users during his reign—first as a city mayor starting in 2011, and culminating at the end of his presidential term in 2022.
According to law enforcement, these encounters led to the deaths of over 6,200 individuals throughout Duterte’s presidency between 2016 and 2022.
His role is depicted as that of an “indirect co-perpetrator” in numerous homicides, with alleged involvement oversetteeing killings between November 2011 and March 2019.
Duterte previously served as the mayor of Davao City, a position from which he purportedly issued orders to law enforcement and so-called “hitmen” who made up the notorious “Davao Death Squads” or DDS.
Cumulative casualties of his “war on drugs” are contested, ranging from national police reports exceeding 6,000 to human rights organizations claiming 30,000.
An arrest warrant was issued, outlining the “reasonable grounds to believe” that Duterte holds “criminal responsibility for the crime against humanity of murder”.
He admits accountability for his “war on drugs”.
Upon returning from Hong Kong, he faced arrest in Manila amidst turmoil, famously declaring, “you have to kill me to bring me to The Hague” during a 12-hour standoff.
He withheld his fingerprints and threatened legal action before being escorted to The Hague.
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