Multiple social media posts are claiming that former president Rodrigo Duterte was found unconscious in his quarters at the International Criminal Court’s detention center in The Hague last weekend. This is not true.
The false posts, which started cropping up on the evening of Nov. 22, carried the text below or a version of it:
“Natagpuang walang malay si Pres. Duterte sa loob ng kanyang detention room/cell sa ICC Detention Facilities, The Hague, The Netherlands kanina lamang.”
(Pres. Duterte was found unconscious inside his detention room/cell at the ICC Detention Facilities, The Hague, The Netherlands just earlier today.)
Many attributed the claim to former broadcaster Jay Sonza. One showed a screenshot of Sonza’s post – which carried the quoted text above – but a review of his accounts no longer shows a record of it.
Duterte’s lawyer and family have both denied the claim.
“I would like to state, in no uncertain terms, that the information circulating on the internet suggesting that former President Duterte was found unconscious in his cell this morning is totally untrue. I have just spoken to him and he is stoically awaiting the judgment of the ICC Appeals Chamber on the matter of interim release,” said Nicholas Kaufman, Duterte’s lead counsel, according to local news reports.
Vice President Sara Duterte, daughter of the former president, also addressed the claim during the Run for Du30 Leg 2 event in Davao City on Nov. 23. According to a SunStar Davao report, the vice president said:
“That’s not true, and nothing like that happened… He said that maybe it was just a prank by many of my supporters.”
ICC spokesperson Fadi El Abdallah told VERA Files the ICC does not communicate anything in relation to the private life of detainees. However, he added, “In general, the Court has put in place all necessary measures to preserve the health and well being of all detainees.”
The false claim continues to circulate this week, just days before the ICC is set to issue a decision on Nov. 28 on the Duterte camp’s appeal for his interim release.
Notably, last September, around the same time the ICC rejected the initial request for Duterte’s interim release, the vice president claimed that her father was found unconscious in his room and had undergone laboratory tests without the knowledge of his family.
VERA Files flagged at least five posts making the false claim this November, collectively garnering about 250 interactions. A more viral post by the Facebook page Brightest Channel, which received thousands of interactions, has since been taken down. The claim has also been shared on X.
