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Janvic Mateo - The Philippine Star
March 15, 2026 | 12:00am
Former president Rodrigo Duterte
STAR / File
MANILA, Philippines — Victims in the crimes against humanity case at the International Criminal Court (ICC) have appealed to Filipinos to respect their right to seek justice, saying their murdered relatives were not accorded due process and other rights currently enjoyed by former president Rodrigo Duterte.
Lawyers Joel Butuyan and Gilbert Andres, common legal representatives of the victims, described Duterte’s arrest and surrender to the ICC over a year ago as a “victory for international criminal justice, accountability and the rule of law.”
“While Mr. Duterte enjoys the presumption of innocence and is afforded his right to a fair trial under international law, our clients’ loved ones were summarily sentenced to death without the benefit of trial,” they said in a statement.
“While the families of Mr. Duterte can visit him and hug him, our clients can only touch the cold graves of their murdered loved ones. Thus, the victims pray that the Filipino people respect and join the victims’ quest for truth and justice for their murdered loved ones,” they added.
The lawyers stressed that Duterte was not subjected to any criminal investigation in the Philippines despite the thousands of victims killed in his government’s anti-drug campaign.
“This is the reason why the ICC had to step in to prevent impunity for an international crime,” they said.
Butuyan and Andres maintained that Duterte’s surrender to the ICC has a firm legal bases under Republic Act 9851 or the Philippine Act on Crimes Against International Humanitarian Law, Genocide and Other Crimes Against Humanity.
“The suffering victims of Mr. Duterte’s anti-drug campaign see his surrender to the ICC, a year ago, as their first step towards justice and truth for their murdered loved ones,” they said.
“Mr. Duterte’s surrender to the ICC is a reminder that even a powerful person such as a former president is subject to accountability and that no one is above the law,” they added.
Duterte is currently detained at the ICC Detention Center at The Hague in the Netherlands. Pre-trial judges are expected to release their decision on whether to confirm the charges against him on or before the end of April.
