Try
By the time Butuyan concluded, there were not a few dry eyes in the gallery. He had articulated to a T the general public sentiment of the Duterte case in the ICC. We in the gallery were momentarily suspended in a state of disbelief.
For the first time in its one year of monthly monitoring of state-related violence, Sandatahang Dahas recorded body dumps of state agents.
Prosecutors played video clips and cited transcripts of Duterte’s speeches in which he issued his “kill, kill” orders, promised to shield police from prosecution and assured them they would not go to jail for actions taken in the drug war.
Joel Butuyan: Truth is the antidote to the virus of impunity, Your Honors. The victims dread a future where charges are not confirmed. It will mean that the virus of impunity will continue to spread and infect many more.
‘Yan ang sigaw ng mga kamag-anak ng mga biktima ng extrajudicial killings noong ipinatupad ni dating pangulong Rodrigo Duterte ang kanyang madugong war on drugs o giyera laban sa droga, habang hinihintay nila ang confirmation hearings sa International Criminal Court sa The Hague, Netherlands.
Is Duterte too frail to remember, or simply too defiant to face the music? Even his own prosecutor has described him as an “unreliable historian” of his health. He adjusts the story as needed. The “sickly” act is a shield , one that spares him the gaze of mothers and children who lost loved ones in the drug war, some of whom have traveled to The Hague seeking justice. By remaining in his cell, he preserves the tough-guy image for supporters back home.
Presiding Judge Iulia Antonella Motoc to Nicholas Kaufman: The Chamber, therefore, urges the Defence to place substance over stylistic and theatrical formulation.
Suspected of the crimes against humanity of murder and attempted murder, allegedly committed in the Republic of the Philippines between 1 November 2011 and 16 March 2019. Surrendered to the custody of the International Criminal Court (ICC) on 12 March 2025. Confirmation of charges hearing to open on 23 February 2026
Ibon’s Rosario Guzman: The nation’s structure is collapsing because of political instability and a fragile economy due to President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s ‘blunders.’ The first was adopting an anti-corruption stance in announcing the anomalous flood control projects while remaining silent on the pork barrel issue.
Niang added that Duterte’s complaints that he is “old, tired, and frail” are irrelevant, again citing the experts’ unanimous conclusion that he “is an unreliable historian in regard to assessment of his health and mental fitness.”
