Victims find voice amid campaign of humiliation

Rodrigo Duterte will not be in the courtroom when judges begin weighing this week whether he should stand trial for crimes against humanity.

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But a select few families of those killed in his drug war have come anyway, crossing continents to witness a hearing where they will not speak, but will be formally recognized as part of the case against him.

This four-day confirmation of charges hearing, set from Monday to Friday, February 27, is not yet a trial for the former president. Instead, a three-judge chamber will hear both sides and the victims on whether there is enough evidence to say that there are “substantial grounds” Duterte committed the crimes he is accused of — a much higher bar than what was needed to secure the warrant of arrest last year.