The International Criminal Court (ICC) Trial Chamber III has rejected a request to allow portions of opening statements in Tagalog during the upcoming trial of former Philippine president Rodrigo Duterte, ruling that proceedings must be conducted in the court’s official working languages, English and French.
The decision came during the fifth and final status conference before Duterte’s trial on charges of crimes against humanity opens on Nov. 30 in The Hague, the Netherlands.
Paolina Massidda, the Common Legal Representative of Victims, asked the chamber to allow portions of the victims’ opening statement to be delivered in Tagalog. She said the request was limited to reading excerpts from victims’ accounts in their native language and would take only about 15 to 20 minutes.
Massidda told judges that many victims in the Philippines are expected to follow the proceedings and would better understand how their stories are presented before the court if portions were delivered in Tagalog.
‘A lot of victims will be connecting to the hearing,’ Massidda said. ‘For them, it’s also important to listen how we convey to the chamber what they narrated to us and their experiences.’
Presiding Judge Iulia Motoc denied the request, citing the Rome Statute, which designates English and French as the ICC’s working languages.
‘The working languages of the court are English and French,’ Motoc said.
The judge said there must be ‘really exceptional’ reasons to depart from that rule.
She also noted that Tagalog is not spoken by all victims participating in the case.
‘The question of Tagalog, it seems to me, it’s not the language of all the victims in any event because I gather some of them speak different languages,’ she said.
Motoc added that allowing non-working languages could create additional administrative burdens and translation costs for the court.
‘The moment we start to do this, then applications come in and it becomes much more complicated and more expensive,’ she said. ‘We are going to follow what the Rome Statute has mandated and it must all be in English.’
The judge further indicated that similar requests have become increasingly common before the court.
‘Up till now, everybody has accepted that. But suddenly, as I say, there seems to be this fashion for asking for the use of one of the non-court languages,’ she said.
Despite rejecting the request, the chamber said it would explore whether Tagalog translations or transcripts could be made available through the court’s website. The judges also stressed that interpretation services would remain available throughout the proceedings.
Duterte expected to attend trial daily
Duterte was absent from Monday’s status conference after his legal team sought permission for him not to attend. The chamber accepted the request, noting that the hearing was expected to be brief.
The judges, however, emphasized that the former president would be expected to attend once the trial begins.
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‘We’ve agreed exceptionally because this is not likely to be a particularly lengthy status conference that Mr. Duterte need not attend this morning,’ Motoc said.
‘But once the actual trial starts, we will expect, as we said, attendance on a daily basis.’
Court approves revised hearing schedule
The chamber also finalized a revised hearing schedule for the first evidentiary phase of the trial, citing expert advice related to Duterte’s condition and the need for regular consultations between the accused and his lawyers.
Hearings will generally run from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. in The Hague, equivalent to 5 p.m. to 11 p.m. in the Philippines, with several breaks throughout the day.
Motoc said the revised timetable was designed to accommodate recommendations made by experts regarding Duterte.
The schedule may be adjusted when witnesses testify from the Philippines through video link.
Prosecutors said around 29 witnesses are expected to testify via audio-visual link. Court officials noted that hearings involving remote witnesses could begin as early as 8 a.m. in The Hague, or 3 p.m. Philippine time, to account for the seven-hour time difference.
Defense may make opening remarks
The chamber also said it would allow the defense to briefly outline its position at the start of the trial, following the opening statements of prosecutors and victims’ representatives.
Defense counsel Peter Haynes told the court he was inclined to do so, citing the significance of the case and Duterte’s status as a former head of state.
Meanwhile, prosecutors said they plan to shorten their opening statement from an earlier estimate of four to six hours to about three hours or less.
Victims’ representatives also said they are working to reduce the length of their presentation.
Prosecution granted 150 hours
Judges granted prosecutors 150 hours to present their evidence and said they would have flexibility in how to allocate that time among witnesses.
The prosecution also disclosed plans to file seven additional Rule 68 applications before the end of the month.
The defense confirmed it has retained expert witnesses, including a statistician and a policing expert.
Judges endorsed a proposal to hear opposing experts in close succession to help the chamber compare competing analyses.
With less than a month before opening statements, prosecutors and defense lawyers continue discussions on agreed facts, disclosure of potentially exculpatory evidence and protective measures for witnesses.