Duterte lawyers won’t present witnesses at Sept ICC hearing
Former President Rodrigo Duterte’s defense team will not be calling on any witnesses or supply written testimonial evidence during the confirmation of charges hearing on Sept. 23 to avoid giving “advance notice” to the prosecution.
Duterte’s team disclosed this information in a filing dated July 24, made in response to orders of the Pre-Trial Chamber I on March 21 and April 17 that sought for observations related to the conduct of the confirmation of charges hearing, provisionally scheduled for September.
“The Defence will not call witnesses to testify at the confirmation hearing. This is a principled decision because credibility is given little weight at confirmation,” Nicholas Kaufman, Duterte’s lead counsel, said in the document.
“Furthermore, the Defence does not wish to give advance notice of the many potential Defence witnesses who would counter the evidence provided by the Prosecution’s discrete and carefully selected band of witnesses-to be counted on the fingers of one hand [REDACTED] who [REDACTED] directly incriminate Mr. Duterte [REDACTED],” it added.
No ‘alibi’
For the same reason, Duterte’s defense team said it would also “not supply written testimonial evidence at confirmation, thereby permitting the Prosecution to adapt its investigation accordingly, should charges be confirmed.”
Duterte’s lawyers will not be presenting an “alibi” to the Pre-Trial Chamber as well, and no grounds will be raised for the “exclusion of criminal responsibility pursuant to Article 31 of the Rome Statute.”
According to Article 31 of the Rome Statute, an individual shall not be criminally responsible if he or she was suffering from a mental disease, was intoxicated to the point of mental incapacity, was acting in self-defense, or was under duress when the crime was committed.
Based on the document, the defense will only be presenting “documentary evidence” during the confirmation hearing.
Ploy for additional info
International Criminal Court (ICC) Assistant to Counsel Kristina Conti said Duterte’s lawyers might be waiting for additional information on the case, considering its previous requests to postpone the decisions on interim release and challenge to jurisdiction.
“The defense has the prerogative to create its own strategy, and in the context of its other filings … it seems that they are waiting for additional, confidential information. At this point, we cannot weigh how important or significant they would be, but if the defense appreciates it, it will be significant to us,” Conti told the Inquirer.
She also noted that the defense team can afford to be passive during the confirmation of charges hearing since the prosecution will be presenting its evidence to show that there are grounds for the case to proceed to trial.
“Technically, there would be no charges, yet, filed against Duterte, although he is being held on reasonable basis to believe that he committed crimes against humanity and acts of murder, etc. But right now, the exact scope of the charges, the exact allegations have to be approved by the Court,” Conti said.
“At the confirmation of charges hearing, the prosecutor will present or summarize its case, arguing that a trial is necessary. On the other hand, the defense will say, there is no case at all,” she added.
Tacit admission?
Lawyer Neri Colmenares, who serves as counsel to families of drug war victims, said the defense team’s decision “only shows that there will be nobody who will testify under oath that President Duterte was not involved at all in the war on drugs and the killings that ensued.”
He said that by choosing not to raise any ground for exclusion of criminal responsibility under Article 31(C) of the Rome Statute, Duterte made a “practical admission that he was responsible for the war on drugs and the killings that resulted from it.”
“Article 31 grants the accused the defense that the crimes alleged in the case ‘were beyond’ President Duterte’s control or that these crimes were committed by another person,” Colmenares said in a statement.
“This is a confirmation of our prediction that President Duterte has no evidence to present during the trial that will prove that he has nothing to do with the killings during his six-year reign as the President and overlord of the war on drugs,” he added.
