As expected, the defense team of detained former president Rodrigo Duterte has filed an appeal for interim release after the International Criminal Court (ICC) Pre-Trial Chamber I rejected their earlier request.
Duterte’s lead counsel Nicholas Kaufman confirmed that an appeal was filed ‘a week ago.’
The ICC on Friday released the public redacted version of the Sept. 26 decision denying the interim release request.
A copy of the defense appeal has yet to be released, but Kaufman described the tribunal’s decision ‘to be erroneous.’
He noted that the ruling rejected ‘unprecedented State guarantees for a debilitated and cognitively-impaired 80-year-old, (who has been) kept from the public eye for more than six months.’
In its 23-page decision, the ICC Pre-Trial Chamber I said Duterte should remain in detention to ensure that he would not obstruct or endanger the investigation and the proceedings.
It outlined why Duterte remains a flight risk and how he could pose a threat to potential witnesses.
The decision, signed by Judges Iulia Antoanella Motoc, Reine Ade?lai?de Sophie Alapini-Gansou and Mari?a del Socorro Flores Liera, also rejected the defense’s arguments that Duterte should be released on the basis of humanitarian conditions.
‘The Chamber notes that the Defense limits itself to argue that ‘Mr. Duterte is 80 years old and medical reports’ . without substantiating how detention is so detrimental that it justifies his release,’ read the ruling.
It stressed that Duterte enjoys the right to medical treatment while in detention, including access to a qualified medical officer with experience in psychiatry and a nurse assigned at the ICC Detention Center.
‘Nothing in the request indicates that this would not be sufficient to ensure that Mr. Duterte receives the appropriate medical attention and care in detention,’ the judges ruled.
The defense is claiming that Duterte is not fit to stand trial supposedly due to cognitive decline.
An independent assessment has yet to be conducted, with the judges saying that the documents presented by the defense ‘do not indicate how Mr. Duterte’s alleged physical condition or cognitive impairment negate the risks’ that would warrant the approval of his interim release plea.
Ruling welcomed
Among those who welcomed the ICC’s rejection of Duterte’s interim release plea is ML party-list Rep. Leila de Lima, who was imprisoned for several years for being a vocal critic of the ex-president.
‘That was quick. We welcome the rejection of the International Criminal Court’s Pre-Trial Chamber of Rodrigo Duterte’s request for interim release,’ De Lima said in a statement.
De Lima said the swift denial of Duterte’s plea for interim release is not a surprise.
‘The plea lacks support both in fact and in the Rome Statute. The ICC does not easily issue warrants of arrest without any inkling of the weight of the evidence,’ De Lima said.
In the case of Duterte, De Lima said the evidence is strong enough for the ICC to require his detention during trial.
‘Expectedly, as a no-nonsense court, the ICC will spare no sacred cows. It will not show favor to anyone, and will only listen to reason and side with what is just and right,’ De Lima noted.
Meanwhile, human rights groups were also delighted with the denied interim release plea.
‘The ICC’s ruling affirms what victims, families and human rights advocates have long known: that Duterte continues to have the means, motive and network to evade justice and obstruct the judicial process,’ the Duterte Panagutin Network said.
‘Allowing him temporary freedom would not only embolden impunity but also place at risk families of victims of his drug war who courageously continue to speak out and testify,’ it added.
ICC Assistant to Counsel Kristina Conti, who represents some of the drug war victims, said the decision ‘shows a fair amount of trust and respect for victims, often overlooked in international law, and a balanced consideration of arguments of the suspect/accused.’
‘The decision on interim release is mollifying, but at the same time acutely reminds us of how influential the Dutertes still are,’ she noted.
‘But with the detention of Duterte the mastermind in the Netherlands, we expect victims and witnesses of the ‘war on drugs’ here in the Philippines to be more emboldened to participate. Perhaps, the victims of all his other crimes as well,’ Conti added.
Mum for now
In Davao Oriental, Vice President Sara Duterte refused to comment on the denial of his father’s interim release plea.
‘I will hold my comment in the ICC case as we need to empathize with the victims of the earthquake and sympathize with those who suffered deaths,’ she said in an ambush interview in Mati City.
The Vice President also refused to comment on the present condition of her father as well as the slashed budget for the Office of the Vice President for 2026.
‘Let us prioritize the victims of the calamities. I will give my comments in the next few days,’ she said.