Duterte camp welcomes ICC decision to defer interim release ruling

Former president Rodrigo Duterte’s legal team has welcomed the International Criminal Court’s (ICC) decision to defer ruling on the urgent request for his interim release, as the defense seeks more time to present additional information deemed crucial to the case.

- By ARGYLL CYRUS GEDUCOS

Duterte's lead counsel, Nicholas Kaufman, said this after the ICC Pre-Trial Chamber 1 granted their request to defer the adjudication on his interim release petition on July 23.

In an interview with the media in The Hague, Kaufman said the postponement was necessary to address delays in acquiring key materials and to properly support their petition for the former president’s temporary release.

“We want to have all the information necessary to promote a claim for interim release,” he said.

“We still require crucial information... but because of various obstacles and delays, we haven’t received it,” he added.

Kaufman denied that the move to defer adjudication was a stalling tactic, saying the pretrial chamber was fully aware of the reasoning behind their petition and would see it as a legitimate legal request.

“I don’t deliberately stall anything,” he said.