ICC: statements of Sara, Omar and Girlie support Duterte’s continued detention
DAVAO CITY (MindaNews / 11 January) – The continued detention of former President Rodrigo Duterte “remains necessary” because there has been no change in circumstances that would require the Chamber to reverse its previous determination, and there are recent developments such as the statements issued by family members that justify his continued detention, the Office of the Prosecutor at the International Criminal Court (ICC) said.
“To the contrary, recent events demonstrate that Mr Duterte’s detention is further justified,” according to the public redacted version of “Prosecution’s observations on the review of the pre-trial detention of Mr Rodrigo Roa Duterte” signed by Mame Mandiaye Niang, Deputy Prosecutor, and released on January 8.
The Office of the Prosecution cited the decision on Duterte’s earlier request for interim release. It said there were “reasonable grounds” to believe that Duterte committed crimes within the jurisdiction of the ICC, that his continued detention appeared necessary to ensure his appearance at trial; to ensure he does not obstruct or endanger the investigation or court proceedings; and to ensure that he does not continue with the commission of crimes.
It said recent developments “lend further support” for Duterte’s continued detention to ensure his appearance at trial.
These developments include pronouncement by his daughter Sara and grandson Omar and close friend Girlie on the alleged kidnapping of the Duterte patriarch and alleged inhumane treatment while in detention.
The Office of the Prosecutor cited a speech of Sara, the Philippines’ Vice President, in Japan on September 21, 2025, repeating her claims that her father was “kidnapped.”
She was reported to have said: “what they did was they kidnapped President Duterte. This is abuse” and that what they did to him was, “with a warrant of arrest, they forcibly took him from our country and brought him to The Hague.
On the same day, in Cagayan de Oro, the ICC noted that Councilor Joyleen Mercedes “Girlie” Labis Balaba, an active member of the “Free Duterte Now” movement, said Duterte was “kidnapped and taken to the Hague.”
The ICC quoted Balaba as saying that the “Free Duterte” rallies continue because “it’s still about corruption. Because we believe that this kidnapping of our former president is an act of a corrupt government.”
Balaba, a former TV reporter and newscaster in Davao City, was publicly known to be in a relationship with then mayor Duterte and was seen accompanying him in several sorties during Duterte’s nationwide “listening tour” in 2015, in preparation for his possible running in the 2016 Presidential polls.
Balaba visited The Hague in June 2025. But only family members can enter the detention center.
The ICC also cited a November 28 interview of Duterte’s grandson, Omar Duterte, Representative to Congress of the 2nd district in Davao City, outside the ICC in The Hague, following the Appeals Chamber’s ruling upholding Duterte’s pre-trial detention.
Omar was asked “what’s your message to the Marcos administration who kidnapped and brought Papa Digong here?” He replied, “I hope they’re happy right now. I hope they feel vindicated on what they did. I hope they got some sort of reward from this. It is borderline…or almost borderline…no, it’s borderline…it’s borderline inhumane keeping an 80-year-old here, away from his family, away from the land they called home. So, yeah, I hope they’re happy.”
“These examples demonstrate that Mr Duterte’s family and associates continue to reject the legitimacy of the legal proceedings against him. His detention therefore continues to be necessary to ensure his appearance at trial,” the ICC said.
It added that there has been no change in circumstances that would require a modification of the Chamber’s ruling that Mr Duterte’s health does not mitigate the risk he presents.
The 80-year old Duterte is facing three counts of murder as a crime against humanity, involving at least 76 deaths during his bloody war on drugs — 19 in Davao City while serving as mayor from 2013 to 2016, and 57 while serving as President between 2016 and 2018.
But the ICC noted that the number of victims is only a “representative sample” of the thousands believed to have been killed extrajudicially within the period.
The Prosecution charged Duterte for the 76 murders and two attempted murders “although the actual scale of victimization during the charged period was significantly greater, as reflected in the widespread nature of the attack,” the ICC said.
Duterte’s counsel had earlier asked for the postponement of the scheduled hearing on the confirmation of charges on September 23, claiming Duterte was not fit to stand trial.
The panel of medical experts who examined Duterte from October 8 to November 18, unanimously said Duterte was fit to stand trial.
“Upon completion of their assessments, panel members individually reached the same overall conclusion that, while frail and elderly, Mr Duterte nevertheless possesses the necessary capacities to meaningfully exercise his procedural and fair trial rights,” the ICC said.
The Pre-Trial Chamber 1 on January 7, denied Duterte’s December 19 request for the panel of medical experts to issue a report focusing on “whether Mr Duterte’s current cognitive state would permit him to flee the ongoing judicial proceedings, to intimidate witnesses, or to commit crimes.”
It said the panel was appointed “precisely for the limited purpose of providing an independent assessment on Mr Duterte’s medical condition in the context of the
Chamber’s adjudication regarding whether he is fit to take part in the pre-trial proceedings.” (Carolyn O. Arguillas / MindaNews)
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