MANILA — Former President Rodrigo Duterte’s legal team has formally sought permission from the International Criminal Court (ICC) to add 108 new pieces of evidence to its defense list, a move seen as a significant step as judges prepare to decide whether the case over his anti-drug campaign will proceed to full trial.
In a filing submitted to the ICC Pre-Trial Chamber, Duterte’s defense panel, led by British-Israeli lawyer Nicholas Kaufman, said the request came after reviewing materials recently disclosed by prosecutors.
The defense maintained that the additional evidence is crucial to ensuring a fair and complete presentation of arguments during the confirmation of charges hearing set later this month in The Hague.
“Having reviewed said items against the evidence already available in the case record, the Defence has identified the Additional Items as highly relevant to the charges and necessary for any meaningful submissions by the Defence at the hearing on the confirmation of charges,” the filing stated.
Citing provisions of the Rome Statute, the ICC’s founding treaty, the defense underscored Duterte’s right to submit evidence prior to trial proceedings.
It stressed that expanding the evidence list forms part of safeguarding the former president’s legal rights during the pre-trial phase.
Lawyers for Duterte also argued that the prosecution would not be disadvantaged by the inclusion of the additional materials.
“No prejudice will stem from the inclusion of the Additional Items on the Defence List of Evidence… their inclusion would occasion no prejudice to the Prosecution, whereas their non-addition would cause significant prejudice to Mr. Duterte,” the defense said.
Duterte was taken into custody on March 11, 2025, upon his arrival in the Philippines from Hong Kong following an ICC-issued warrant tied to its investigation into alleged killings linked to his administration’s anti-narcotics operations.
He was transferred later that same day to the ICC detention facility in The Hague.
The ICC has accused Duterte of responsibility for alleged extrajudicial killings carried out during his presidency, including claims that death squads were organized and supported to target suspected drug offenders.
He made his initial appearance before ICC judges via video conference on March 14, 2025.
Originally scheduled for September 2025, the confirmation of charges hearing was postponed after the defense sought additional time to prepare. Judges also denied Duterte’s petition for temporary release pending further proceedings.
The ICC Pre-Trial Chamber has set the confirmation of charges hearing from February 23 to 27, 2026, in The Hague, where judges will determine whether sufficient evidence exists to move the case forward to trial./PN
