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Prosecutors find Duterte criminally responsible as an indirect co-perpetrator of murder as a crime against humanity in his city-wide and country-wide war on drugs as mayor and president, respectively

THE HAGUE, Netherlands – International Criminal Court prosecutors led by Deputy Prosecutor Mame Mandiaye Niang charged former president Rodrigo Duterte on Monday, September 22, with three counts of murder. These are in connection with alleged crimes against humanity committed when he was Davao City mayor, and later when he was president.

In a 15-page filing with the Pre-Trial Chamber, Niang said Duterte was criminally liable for the following:

1. Murder of 19 victims as a crime against humanity during his mayorship of Davao City from 2013 to 2016.

2. Murder of 14 victims, labelled “high-value targets,” as a crime against humanity during his presidency from 2016 to 2017.

3. Murder and attempted murder of 45 victims as crimes against humanity in barangay clearing operations across the Philippines from 2016 to 2018.

“At least between 1 November 2011 and 16 March 2019, Duterte and his co-perpetrators shared a common plan or agreement to ‘neutralize’ alleged criminals in the Philippines (including those perceived or alleged to be associated with drug use, sale or production) through violent crimes including murder,” the prosecutors’ document read.

Prosecutors referred to this as the “Common Plan.”

The document recounted details of Duterte’s Davao Death Squad (DDS), which he mobilized to kill alleged criminals during his time as mayor. At the top of the “structure of power,” Duterte used the DDS to carry out the Common Plan in the city.

“During Duterte’s presidential campaign and the transition period after he was elected, the co-perpetrators agreed to expand the Common Plan to ‘neutralise’ alleged criminals through violent crimes including murder across the Philippines,” the filing read.

ICC prosecutors charge Duterte with 3 counts of murder by Rappler

Duterte was arrested in March and taken to the ICC in The Hague, where he has been detained over alleged crimes against humanity related to his deadly war on drugs. 

A confirmation of charges hearing had been previously scheduled for September 23, but this has been postponed by the ICC after the former president’s lawyer Nicholas Kaufman claimed Duterte was “not fit to stand trial.” Kaufman on September 9 described Duterte’s medical situation as “progressively deteriorating.”

Victims’ lawyer Kristina Conti had described the move as “a desperate, time-worn, and calculated ploy to paint himself (Duterte) aggrieved.”

According to government data, at least 6,252 people were killed in police operations between July 1, 2016, and May 31, 2022. But human rights groups estimate deaths from vigilante-style killings to be between 27,000 to 30,000.

Despite the arrest, Duterte has remained widely popular among his support base of Filipinos in the Philippines, especially in his hometown Davao City, and across the world. 

Duterte was mayor of Davao City for a total of 22 years, and president of the Philippines from 2016 to 2022. – Rappler.com