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MANILA, Philippines — Former President Rodrigo Duterte made his first appearance before the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague, Netherlands on Friday, March 14 — although virtually.
Before three female judges of Pre-Trial Chamber I, Duterte confirmed his identity as the Court formally laid out the crimes against humanity charges against him.
The case stems from Duterte’s bloody war on drugs as president and his brutal crackdown on crime as Davao City mayor.
The international tribunal has been investigating extrajudicial killings under his administration since 2017, tracing back to crimes as early as 2011.
Since the Philippines withdrew its membership from the ICC, the tribunal could only investigate the alleged crimes committed from November 2011 to March 2019.
The Court found that the attacks on civilians were “both widespread and systematic,” resulting in the deaths of thousands of Filipinos — including children — who were denied due process and proper investigation under his anti-drug campaign.
Duterte also stands accused as “the founder and head of the Davao Death Squad.”
The Court also informed him of his rights under the Rome Statute, including the option to seek interim release pending trial, which could allow him to leave ICC custody.
According to the registry, the former president is aware of his rights and the charges made against him.
Philippine authorities served the arrest warrant on March 11 under the notification of the International Criminal Police Organization (Interpol), and he was transferred to ICC custody on March 12.
Following Duterte’s initial appearance, who is the first former Asian head of state to be arrested by the international tribunal, the Chamber set the confirmation of charges hearing for September 23, 2025.
Here is the full transcript.
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Court Officer: All rise, the International Criminal Court is now in session. Please be seated.
Judge Iulia Motoc (Presiding Judge): Good morning, I would like to welcome everyone outside and inside the courtroom. Now, before we start with today’s initial appearance, I would like to remind you that the chamber has authorized video recordings and taking of photographs. Please go ahead.
Thank you. You have one minute to take photographs and record videos.
Thank you very much. Court Officer could you please call the case.
Court Officer: Thank you, Madam President, Your Honours. The situation in the Republic of the Philippines case, the prosecutor versus Mr. Rodrigo Roa Duterte, case number ICC 0121-0125.
Motoc: Thank you very much. I will now ask the parties to introduce themselves starting with the Office of the Prosecutor. Please pause before speaking and speak slowly to allow the interpreters to interpret appropriately. May I ask you to introduce yourself and to confirm whether the list of your staff that I received prior to the hearing is correct, Mr. Prosecutor?
Prosecutor Karim Khan: Thank you, Madam President, Your Honours. Good morning. The list is correct. Once again, deputy prosecutor Mandiaye Niang to my left, trial lawyer Edward Jeremy behind us, trial lawyer Robynne Croft, International Cooperation Advisor Chantal Daniels, and our very able case manager, Grace Goh.
I'm Karim Khan, the prosecutor. Merci beaucoup. Thank you very much.
Motoc: I now turn to the Council for the Defence of Mr. Duterte. As everyone can see, Mr. Duterte is present and is attending the hearing via video link. As Mr. Duterte made a long journey involving a considerable time difference, the Chamber authorized Mr. Duterte to follow the hearing at a distance. His counsel, however, is present with us in the courtroom. Thank you, counsel please introduce yourself.
Salvador Medialdea: Good afternoon, Your Honors. I am Salvador C. Medialdea, counsel for Rodrigo Roa Duterte.
Motoc: Thank you very much. Thank you very much, counsel. I will now introduce the Chamber. By my side we have Judge Reine Alapini-Gansou, the vice president of the Court and Judge Socorro Flores Liera. I am the presiding judge of the pre-trial chamber i of the court and my name is Iulia Antoanella Motoc.
Now, I would like to speak to you, Mr. Duterte. I'm speaking French, but you are receiving interpretation of what I'm saying in English. I understand that you are at ease in the English language and that the interview yesterday at the detention centre was conducted in English and that you did not deem it necessary to request interpretation into any other language during this interview.
This said, I would like firstly to confirm your identity. Could you provide us with your full name please.
Duterte: I am Rodrigo Roa Duterte. That’s my first. Middle name is Roa. Surname is Duterte.
Motoc: Thank you very much. What is your date of birth?
Duterte: Again, Ma’am?
Medialdea: Can we request that the question be repeated? I don’t think he heard it. Thank you.
Motoc: Repetition from the English booth. What is your date of birth? Thank you very much, counsel. I was asking quite simply of Mr Duterte, what his full names were, and I subsequently asked him what his date of birth was and what his place of birth is. Is that all right, counsel?
Duterte: Yes, of course, I do. My birthday is March 28, 1945. I was born in the province of Leyte in the Philippines.
Motoc: Thank you very much. As a preliminary point. Very well, thank you Mr Duterte. As a preliminary point, it is useful to clarify the nature and limited scope of this first appearance hearing.
Today’s hearing is neither the start of the trial nor is it a confirmation of charges hearing. During today’s hearing, no evidence will be collected or presented and the issues of Mr Duterte’s guilt or innocence will therefore not be addressed.
In accordance with Article 61 of the Rome Statute, the Court’s founding treaty and Rule 1211 of the Rules of Procedure and Evidence, the main purpose of this initial appearance is to answer three questions.
Firstly, the Chamber must ensure that the person who was the subject of the arrest warrant has been informed of the crimes of which he is accused.
Second, the Chamber must ensure that this person has been informed of his rights as recognized by the Rome Stature.
Third, the Chamber must set a date on which it intends to hold confirmation of charges hearing.
The Chamber notes that your counsel, Mr Duterte, filed two motions: one in relation with today's hearing, and you may be aware that these two motions have not been accepted by the Chamber because of the nature of today's hearing.
No further discussion on the matter is necessary during this hearing, because, as I said at an earlier stage, the aim of this hearing today is to introduce the parties and to ascertain the charges and to set a date for the confirmation of charges hearing at a later stage.
With regard to the first point, I recall that Mr. Duterte has received a copy of the warrant for his arrest and that a redacted version of the prosecutor's application for the issuance of the warrant of arrest is public. I will now ask the Court Officer to read the charges against him. The charges will be read in English.
I will not ask the court officer to read the charges against him. The charges will be read in English. Please, over to you Madam courtroom officer.
Court Officer: Thank you, Madam President, your Honours. On 7 March 2025, Pre-Trial Chamber I concluded that there were reasonable grounds to believe that Mr Duterte is criminally responsible pursuant to Article 25, 3(a) of the Rome Statute. As an alleged and indirect co-perpetrator of the crime against humanity of murder pursuant to Article 7, 1(a) of the Statute as follow:
- Murder of at least 19 persons allegedly drug pushers or thieves killed by members of the Davao Death Squad in various locations in or around Davao City, Philippines between 2011 and 2016.
- Murder of at least 24 persons allegedly criminals such as drug pushers or thieves or drug users killed by or under the supervision of members of the Philippines’ law enforcement sometimes with the assistance of persons who were not part of the police at various locations in the Philippines between 2016 and 2019.
Motoc: Thank you, Madam Courtroom Officer. Mr Duterte, I’m not going to ask you to stand up because I know your condition, so I’m going to allow you to remain seated. You have just heard the reading of the charges which are in accordance with the content of the arrest warrant you received. This means you have been informed of the crimes of which you are accused and this concludes the examination of the first point mentioned above. I will now turn to the second point which concerns your rights as a suspect before this court.
I will summarize some of these rights which are of particular importance at this stage of the proceedings. Those rights are as follows:
You can benefit from the assistance free of charge of a competent interpreter and benefit from the necessary translation to meet the requirements of furnish.
You have the right to have the time and facilities necessary to prepare your defense and to communicate freely and confidentially with the counsel of your choice.
You have the right to remain silent and you cannot be forced to testify against yourself or to confess guilt.
You can also make statements in your defense without taking an oath.
In addition to any other disclosure provided for in the Statute, the prosecutor must disclose to you as soon as practicable evidence in his possession or at his disposal that shows or tends to show your innocence or to mitigate your guilt, or that could undermine the credibility of the evidence against you.
At the confirmation of charges hearing, you can contest the charges, challenge the evidence presented by the prosecutor and present evidence. There will be no trial if the charges are not confirmed or the proceedings against you are completed. You have the possibility to make an application for interim release pending trial.
And finally Mr Duterte, you have the right to be informed as soon as possible and in detail of the nature, cause and content of the charges in a language that you fully understand and speak.
Counsel, have you understood?
Medialdea: We’re listening, Ma’am. We’re listening and before it ends, may we be allowed to present a manifestation on the circumstances behind the delivery of Mr Duterte in this Chamber.
Motoc: Yes, counsel. As part of the procedure and as we said since the very outset, I need to ask Mr. Duterte himself to make observations as to the condition of his surrender to the Court and the conditions of his detention at the detention facility of the Court since his arrival. If he can please tell us these details.
Medialdea: Ma’am, thank you.
Motoc: Yes, counsel.
Medialdea: Two days ago, the whole world has witnessed the degrading fashion in which a former president of a sovereign country was bundled into a private aircraft and summarily transported to The Hague. To ask lawyers, this would be called an extrajudicial rendition. To the less legally inclined, it was a pure and simple kidnapping. My client was denied all access to the legal recourse in the country of his citizenship and this all in the nature of political quar-settling.
Two troubled entities struck an unlikely alliance. An incumbent president who wished to neutralize and choke the legacy of my client and his daughter, on the other hand, and a troubled legal institution subject to delegitimization and desperate for a price cut and a legal show today, on the other hand.
With this in mind, it is not surprising that my client was abducted from his country. ICC private jets do not drop out of the thin air. That jet which received my client was coordinated in advance. The UAE is not a state party to the ICC and has no obligation to cooperate with the court. Yet my client sat in transit in that country for more than five hours. I invite the registry's representative to present today in court to explain to the judges exactly how they believe this transfer was anything other than a gross abuse of process.
Given the precipitous arrival of my client, an elderly man with debilitating medical issues, hard of hearing and poor of sight, he was taken to a hospital for observation. Only this morning have I met him for the first time with less than an hour to discuss legal issues. I have not been able to present him with a hard copy of the arrest warrant because we were not supplied with such.
I have not even been able to explain to him what the prosecution requested when seeking the issuance of an arrest warrant. This is because the chamber only established a redacted version of the prosecution request last night. Other than to identify himself, my client is not able to contribute anything to this hearing.
Most importantly, he is not able even to tell you that he has been informed of the charges as contained in the arrest warrant for a reason more pertinent to which I alluded in my written request to this honorable pretrial chamber this morning and which is confidential in nature.
Accordingly, I repeat my respectful request, which was rejected this morning, to postpone the substantive aspect of this hearing to the next week when I will have the opportunity to sit with my client and to explain to him what the confirmation hearing is and what the disclosure is and how the prosecution alleges that he committed crimes. I thank the Court for its attention and regret to say that I do not have instructions to continue my submission any further today. Thank you.
Motoc: Thank you, Counsel. Now, with regard to the health issues of Mr. Duterte, I believe that the Court has taken specific measures with regard to his health situation and I note that subsequent to his arrest and when he arrived at the detention center, the Court's doctor was of the opinion that you were fully mentally aware and fit and that you have undergone further checks and tests at the detention facility.
And when you broached health matters saying that you were not able to come to the hearing, the doctors who consulted with you were of the opinion that Mr. Duterte was not in a position to come to the hearing physically but that if he gave written permission, he would be able to take part via video link. Now, that is with regard to the health matters that you just mentioned. They are very important, especially concerning the matter of age.
Now, with regard to the rights of Mr. Duterte, we have before us the registrar's or the registry's report that says that Mr. Duterte has been informed of his rights, including Article 66 and 67 of the Rome Statute, and that he is aware of his rights and that he is also aware of the charges against him.
We have before us the report of the registry saying that he was also aware of the warrant of arrest in the English language and that he is very well-versed in the English language. Once again, you have the possibility of these charges being read in English, which was the case today.
I have read to you in the French language the rights that he has, Mr. Duterte, before this court, and I'd like to specify once again that this is an initial hearing in order for Mr. Duterte to be aware of his rights and the charges against him. And then there will be a full procedure that will unfurl leading up to the confirmation of charges that will enable Mr. Duterte to raise all the matters that you have just raised with regard to the warrant of arrest, with regard to the crimes committed, with regards to the charges, and any other matters associated with his arrest and the matters of jurisdiction of the court.
You have the opportunity to do this throughout these proceedings leading up to the actual confirmation of charges hearing. Now, counsel, with regard to your request for another hearing to be held next week, well your initial request that was, this was not accepted by the Court.
Now, you have seen the two decisions of the court that have been disclosed to you, and you are aware of the fact that these two decisions were refused. And this is tied into the fact that this first initial appearance hearing does not need much preparation, as I have said to you on a number of occasions.
I am now going to move on to the third stage, which is to set the date for the confirmation of charges hearing. After assessing all factors, including the need for the parties and participants to adequately prepare, as well as Mr. Duterte's rights, including his right to be tried within a reasonable time, the date for the commencement of the confirmation of charges hearing is September the 23rd, 2025.
I would add that in accordance with Rule 1217 of the Rules of Procedure and Evidence, this date may be postponed by the Chamber depending on the progress of the proceedings, either on its own motion or at the request of the prosecutor or the defense.
Before concluding this hearing, I would like to inform the parties of the next procedural steps. First, I would like to recall that in accordance with Rule 121 2(b) of the Rules of Procedure and Evidence, the Chamber holds status conferences to ensure a small exchange of information under satisfactory conditions. These conferences are organized either ex-officio or at the request of the prosecutor or the defense.
Secondly, a set of decisions will be taken in a timely manner to ensure that the proceedings progress smoothly and expeditiously.
More specifically, I am referring in particular to a decision on the arrangements and procedure for the disclosure of evidence. And a decision setting a timetable for the disclosure of evidence in such a way as to ensure orderly and efficient disclosure between the parties.
In this regard, the Chamber orders the prosecutor to begin disclosing today the information on the basis of which the warrant of arrest was issued, and to complete this disclosure no later than within the next seven days.
The Chamber will also issue a decision on the participation of the victims who, according to the Statute of the Court and to the extent permitted by the Chamber, are authorized to present their views and concerns at this stage of the proceedings.
We have come to the end of Mr. Duterte's first appearance hearing. I would like to thank all the participants in this hearing, the interpreters and the stenographers. This concludes today's hearing.
END
