Disinformation involving former president Rodrigo Duterte continues to circulate on Facebook, with new posts claiming that the International Criminal Court has rescheduled his long-awaited trial because his illness has worsened. This is false and the image was generated using artificial intelligence.
On July 8, a post with a photo of Duterte, ICC Judge Joanna Korner and his counsel Peter Haynes was published with an overlaid text that reads:
“DUTERTE LUMALA ANG SAKIT. NAPILITANG I-RESCHEDULE NG ICC ANG PRE-TRIAL NI RODRIGO DUTERTE DAHIL MAS LUMALA NA ANG SAKIT NG DATING PANGULO
(Duterte’s illness has worsened. The ICC was forced to reschedule Rodrigo Duterte’s pre-trial because the former president’s condition has become more serious).”
The caption calls on President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr. to allow the erstwhile Philippine leader to be placed under house arrest because of his age and physical condition.
The ICC indeed cancelled the conference hearing scheduled for July 14 because neither the prosecution nor the defense had any immediate administrative issues to resolve, not because of Duterte’s health. The pre-trial is still set on September 16, while the trial itself will proceed on Nov. 30.
There are no news reports stating that the trial of the former president has been rescheduled. Neither has the ICC, which usually publishes developments in the trial on its website, made any such announcement. Duterte’s lawyer and family have likewise been silent.
In a July 5 interview, Duterte’s daughter Veronica said her father was doing fine, but finds it difficult staying inside the detention center. This update from the younger Duterte was reported by Bilyonaryo News Channel.
The photo used is part of a post of three AI-generated images published on June 7 by FB page Taong Bayan PH and reposted by another page after an hour, with another misinformation.
VERA Files Fact Check ran the video through AI detection tools to verify its authenticity.
Hive Moderation and AIorNot flagged the image as likely deepfake with 40% and 63% likelihood, respectively. WasitAI also noted that some parts of the image were created by AI.
ImageWhisperer, another AI detection tool, indicated that the image may have been edited. The tool showed a mismatch in lighting and sharpness on the subject’s central face.
Although the court deemed him fit to attend the pre-trial proceedings, 81-year-old Duterte did not show up at the confirmation of charges held from Feb. 23 to 27 after his request to waive his right to be present.
The erroneous post resurfaced after Veronica’s July 5 interview discussing her father’s condition while in detention at The Hague.
A previous AI-generated image similar to the post had already been fact-checked by VERA Files a month ago.
Published by an FB user the post collectively garnered 2,834 reactions; 774 comments; 227 shares.
