Victims’ lawyers wary of ‘shock’ tactic on Du30 health
Lawyers for the drug war victims expect former President Rodrigo Duterte to look frail and much older than his age when he appears for the second time before the International Criminal Court (ICC).
They also expect pro-Duterte social media “trolls” to go into overdrive exploiting this imagery and portray him as the victim.
They said they anticipate this as part of the “shock and awe” tactic to support his defense team’s claim about the 80-year-old Duterte’s deteriorating health.
According to lawyer Kristina Conti, Duterte may present himself in the four-day confirmation of charges hearing, scheduled to open on Feb. 23, as an aging man who looks like an “albularyo” (folk healer) or a “slender Santa Claus” with unkempt white hair and a leaner frame.
Significant changes in his appearance after nearly a year in detention at the Scheveningen prison complex in The Hague could be an opportunity for the defense team to draw attention to his health issues during the hearings.
“The visualization of what he would look like is also a preparation (on our part), so we could focus only on the charges, not on his appearance,” Conti said in a press conference held on Tuesday by human rights group Karapatan.
The victims and their lawyers reject any notion that Duterte has gone “senile,” citing the medical report issued by a panel of experts tapped by the Pre-Trial Chamber (PTC) I to determine whether the former president is still fit to participate in the proceedings.
“In terms of mental capacity, he is able to understand the proceedings,” Conti said.
Lawyer Jojo Lacanilao, convener of the group Duterte Panagutin Network, warned of fresh waves of fake news being unleashed in time for the ICC hearings to sow doubts on the victims’ stories.
To counter this, “We should make sure that we forward the correct narrative of the victims. Duterte is not the victim here,” Lacanilao said.
First appearance
Duterte was last seen by the public on March 15 last year when he first appeared before the ICC via videoconference.
It was his first hearing at The Hague-based court, held four days after he was arrested by Philippine authorities in Manila, handed over to the Interpol, and flown to the Netherlands.
While the charges of crimes against humanity were being read to him at the PTC I, Duterte appeared sluggish and sleepy, his appearing eyes shut whenever he was shown on the livestream video.
Duterte is expected to appear again before the PTC I for the confirmation of charges hearings on Feb. 23, 24, 26 and 27, where the parties to the case would present their arguments.
The former president, who served from 2016 to 2022, is charged with three counts of murder over the deaths of 76 individuals and attempted murder of two others in his campaign against illegal drugs.
According to the ICC, these involved murders linked to the Davao Death Squad in or around Davao City during his term as mayor between 2013 and 2016; murders of alleged “high-value targets” during his term as president between 2016 and 2017; and murders and attempted murders in the barangay clearance operations during his presidency between 2016 and 2018.
For Neri Colmenares, who also has been giving legal assistance to the victims, whatever shock factor that the defense would use in court would not erase the bloodshed and misery caused by the drug war.
“For us, the only shock and awe are the… messaging that there was really injustice,” Colmenares said at Tuesday’s press conference.
Pressing for justice
“For us, this is light in a long period of darkness. Finally, we have seen the sun, the light. My parents said that the ICC is an answered prayer,” said Sheerah Escudero, a volunteer for the group Rise Up for Rights and for Life.
Sheerah’s 18-year-old brother, Ephraim, disappeared on Sept. 19, 2017, in San Pedro, Laguna. Five days later, he was found dead in Pampanga province, his head wrapped in packaging tape and his arms and legs bound.
She said police investigators in Pampanga just told her family that her brother was “collateral damage” in someone else’s conflict.
But she said her family was convinced that Ephraim was a victim of “an extrajudicial killing related to the drug war.”
“This is a difficult fight. The bashing and hate messages from Duterte’s supporters are hard to endure. They send me messages stressing that my brother deserved his fate and other hurtful words,” said Sheerah.
Reject drug war
Meanwhile, a senior official of the Human Rights Watch (HRW) said President Marcos must reject the “war on drugs” as a state policy, urging him to take more action in addressing human rights abuses.
“[Mr. Marcos] should publicly declare an end to the ‘drug war,’ order credible investigations of those responsible for abuses, and take steps to rejoin the ICC,” Maria Elena Vignoli, senior counsel for HRW’s international justice program, said in a statement on Monday.
“The ICC’s proceedings against Duterte should push [Mr.] Marcos to break with the past, distance himself from his predecessor’s bloody policies, and promote justice and the rule of law,” Vignoli said.
The independent research group Dahas based in University of the Philippines Diliman, as of Feb. 7, had documented 1,173 drug-related killings under the Marcos administration.
The HRW’s World Report 2026 noted that despite Mr. Marcos’ repeated promises to prioritize human rights, serious violations persisted, including extrajudicial killings, enforced disappearances, and harassment or threats against activists and journalists.
Security forces involved in these abuses were seldom held accountable, said the human rights group in the report.
“President Marcos should move beyond rhetoric and take concrete measures to improve human rights in the Philippines,” HRW Deputy Asia Director Bryony Lau said in the report.
******
Get real-time news updates: inqnews.net/inqviber
