Expect 'very strong rebuttal' from Duterte camp in next ICC hearing

The lead counsel in former president Rodrigo Duterte’s crimes against humanity charges before the International Criminal Court (ICC) is expected to make a “very strong” rebuttal of the evidence to be presented by the prosecution during the Sept. 23. confirmation of charges hearing.

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British-Israeli lawyer Nicholas Kaufman shared the defense’s plans for the confirmation of charges hearing, which will determine whether Duterte’s case will proceed to trial or not.

“Very strong rebuttal of prosecution evidence,” he responded when asked during an interview livestreamed on Alvin & Tourism Facebook page on Tuesday, Aug. 26.

The lawyer earlier said that he would be spending 30 minutes each for the opening and closing statements, and three to four hours to address the legal issues of the case.

Kaufman explained that the confirmation of charges hearing is where “the prosecution gets the first opportunity to present their case, and the defense get their first opportunity to challenge the prosecution evidence.”