ICC begins confirmation hearing on Rody case today

He may not be present in person or even virtually, but everything that will be discussed inside Courtroom 1 of the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague this week will be all about former president Rodrigo Duterte.

- By JANVIC MATEO

A supporter of former president Rodrigo Duterte writes a message on a bus as part of a signature campaign in Manila yesterday.

The crimes against humanity proceedings against Duterte enter a critical stage with the opening of the weeklong confirmation of charges hearing at the ICC today.

But Duterte, detained for almost a year since his arrest in March 2025, will not be seen by the public after the Pre-Trial Chamber I granted his request to skip the proceedings.

He will remain in his detention facility at the ICC Detention Center, located within a Dutch prison complex in Scheveningen on the outskirts of The Hague.

Duterte's defense team led by lawyer Nicholas Kaufman will represent him in the confirmation of charges hearings, a pretrial procedure where judges will determine if there is "sufficient evidence to establish substantial grounds to believe" that Duterte committed the crimes as charged.

While the ICC's Office of the Prosecutor had already submitted initial evidence against Duterte when it applied for the warrant of arrest last year, it would be at the confirmation of charges hearings where the merits of the case would be discussed for the first time in open court.

It will be held for four days divided into three sessions.

The confirmation hearings will open with the reading of the charges today at 10 a.m. in The Hague (5 p.m. in Manila).

It will immediately be followed by the opening statement from the prosecution, before the session goes on break.

The second session for the day, from 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. (6:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. in Manila) will be for opening statements from the common legal representatives of the victims and the defense.