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Janvic Mateo - The Philippine Star
January 7, 2026 | 12:00am
Composite photo shows the facade of the International Criminal Court and former President Rodrigo Duterte.
Facebook / International Criminal Court; House of Representatives / Release
MANILA, Philippines — Pre-trial judges of the International Criminal Court (ICC) have rejected the request of former president Rodrigo Duterte’s lawyers for information regarding communications involving medical experts appointed to assess his fitness to stand trial.
In a five-page decision, the ICC Pre-Trial Chamber I said the defense has “all the necessary information” regarding the ICC Registry’s interactions with the experts and the instructions on the basis of which they prepared their reports.
“Without further substantiation from the defense, the disclosure of ‘all communications between the Registry and the three experts’ is not warranted,” read the decision signed by all three pre-trial judges.
Duterte’s lawyer Nicholas Kaufman had requested the judges to direct the ICC Registry to disclose all communications it had with the three medical experts.
The prosecution and the victims’ counsel have urged the pre-trial chamber to declare Duterte fit to stand trial, based on the reports submitted by the medical experts.
The judges have yet to issue their decision on the matter.
Duterte has long hair
Davao City Rep. Paolo Duterte has arrived in The Hague, Netherlands to visit his father, who is accused of crimes against humanity.
Paolo joined Rodrigo’s youngest daughter Veronica.
In an interview posted on Facebook, Paolo recalled entering his father’s detention cell.
“He has long hair. He took a bath…He didn’t eat anything. He just slept,” Duterte said.
Aside from the Netherlands, Duterte is scheduled to visit Australia, based on an itinerary of his travel from Jan. 3 to 30.
Duterte has revised his request for travel clearance from the House of Representatives, reducing the travel period to less than a month and the destinations to just two from the previous 17.
Duterte had requested clearance from the House to travel to 17 destinations from Dec. 15, 2025 to Feb. 20.
The former president spent Christmas and New Year without his family, following International Criminal Court rules barring visitation during the holidays.
Veronica arrived in The Hague on Dec. 19.
Meanwhile, Vice President Sara Duterte was seen in Clark, Pampanga, but the Office of the Vice President (OVP) did not confirm it, nor the agenda of her visit.
The OVP said on Monday that the Vice President led the inauguration of a donated private project in one of the barangays of Cawayan, Masbate.
Imee: Arrest Bato
Sen. Imee Marcos yesterday challenged authorities to serve the arrest warrant against Sen. Ronald dela Rosa if it truly exists, criticizing the lingering uncertainty that has reportedly forced the lawmaker into physical seclusion.
In an interview, Marcos revealed that she and her Senate colleagues have lost direct personal communication with Dela Rosa, who has been absent amid rumors of an impending ICC arrest regarding his involvement in the previous administration’s bloody drug war.
Marcos expressed frustration over the vague status of the ICC arrest warrant, as reports have circulated for months that the warrant is already in the country, yet no official move has been made to serve it.
Marcos described the situation as a form of psychological persecution against Dela Rosa and the broader base of Duterte supporters. — Bella Cariaso, Neil Jayson Servallos
