Marilyn Cahatol

Article (news)

Bea Cuadra

ABS-CBN News

<div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:960px;display:block" width="960"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/17883082877301788308286746.jpeg" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960"/><span class="fr-inner" style="text-align:left">Rodrigo Duterte’s initial appearance on 14 March 2025 before Pre-Trial Chamber I of the International Criminal Court. <em>Handout </em></span></span></span></div><p>MANILA — Defense lawyers for former President Rodrigo Roa Duterte have formally petitioned the International Criminal Court (ICC) to strike out the current document containing the charges against him, arguing that the Prosecution’s framing of the case violates his fundamental right to a fair trial.</p><div> </div><div style="text-align:center"><iframe src="https://www.facebook.com/plugins/post.php?href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2FabscbnNEWS%2Fposts%2Fpfbid0hkhWu5hS4Z4CHndafjKZv59Zd5vBYvPBQzSkepXwPn6kL2iH6c6Jd54Z8R7xqVXUl&amp;show_text=true&amp;width=500" width="500" height="658" style="border:none;overflow:hidden" scrolling="no" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe></div><div><br/></div><p>In a Rule 134(1) motion filed on Monday, lead defense counsel Peter Haynes KC argued that using &quot;illustrative&quot; and &quot;non-exhaustive&quot; incidents leaves the defense unable to build an effective strategy just three months before trial.</p><p>The defense submitted that the charges, as currently framed, violate the accused’s right to be informed in detail of the nature and cause of the allegations under Article 67(1)(a) of the ICC Statute.</p><p>&quot;The accused cannot even begin to make strategic decisions about how to approach this case, because he does not know what case he has to meet,&quot; the submission stated.</p><p>The filing targets the structural format of the Document Containing the Charges (DCC), which groups allegations under three broad counts covering murder and attempted murder as crimes against humanity during Duterte&#x27;s tenures as Mayor of Davao City and President of the Philippines:</p><p>• Count 1: Murder as a crime against humanity in Davao City (2013 to around June 2016)</p><p>• Count 2: Murder as a crime against humanity targeting &quot;High-Value Targets&quot; nationwide (around July 2016 to July 2017)</p><p>• Count 3: Murder and attempted murder as crimes against humanity during barangay clearance operations nationwide (around July 2016 to September 2018)</p><p>Instead of setting out fixed factual bases for each count, the Prosecution initially cited 49 underlying incidents while asserting the overall attack encompassed thousands of other murders. On the day of the filing, the defense received notice of eight additional incidents, bringing the total to 57.</p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2026/9/2/icc-prosecutors-submit-final-list-of-witnesses-evidence-ahead-of-duterte-trial-on-nov-30-0754">ICC prosecutors submit final list of witnesses, evidence ahead of Duterte trial on Nov. 30</a></div><p>Haynes criticized the framing as a stark departure from prior tribunal practice, where charging documents typically specify exact events, dates, locations, and victim tallies.</p><p>&quot;The Duterte charges are a literal moving target; a non-exhaustive, illustrative list of events whose proof beyond reasonable doubt may or may not trigger liability for thousands of others,&quot; Haynes wrote.</p><p>Under the current structure, the defense contended that individual killings have been relegated to &quot;mere samples rather than concrete legal charges,&quot; leaving specific alleged acts without proper legal characterization.</p><p>The defense emphasized that Prosecution disclosures have ballooned from roughly 5,000 documents at the confirmation stage to more than 25,000 items. Many of the 20,000 additional items describe alleged killings unrelated to the listed incidents.</p><p>Without fixed parameters, the defense argued it would effectively be forced to prepare defenses for &quot;any alleged unlawful killing in the Philippines over a seven-year-plus period.&quot;</p><p>The filing also raised trial management concerns, emphasizing the necessity of an expeditious trial given the age and vulnerability of the accused. The defense warned that challenging each of the 57 incidents would be meaningless if the Prosecution could still rely on unlisted events outside the core list to secure a conviction.</p><p>Characterizing the Prosecution&#x27;s approach as a device to &quot;throw all its material at the wall and see what sticks,&quot; the defense asserted that the framework prevents the Trial Chamber from assessing whether individual acts connect to a widespread or systematic attack.</p><p>The motion asks the Trial Chamber to strike out the current document and order the Prosecution to re-file a precise set of charges with an exhaustive list of underpinning acts.</p><div><br/></div><div><strong>RELATED VIDEO:</strong></div><div style="text-align:center"><iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/pHsccidvK_c?si=UUdB6iGOXwqQhY6c" title="YouTube video player" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe></div>

<p>Without fixed parameters, the defense argued it would effectively be forced to prepare defenses for "any alleged unlawful killing in the Philippines over a seven-year-plus period."</p>

Without fixed parameters, the defense argued it would effectively be forced to prepare defenses for "any alleged unlawful killing in the Philippines over a seven-year-plus period."

Citing 'right to a fair trial', Duterte defense urges ICC to strike out vague charges, order precise filing

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Citing 'right to a fair trial', Duterte defense urges ICC to strike out vague charges, order precise filing

Bea Cuadra,

ABS-CBN News

Published September 02, 2026 09:16 AM PHT

Read More:

ICC

Duterte

The Hague

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