Former Philippines president Rodrigo Duterte said he was prepared to accept responsibility as the International Criminal Court took him into custody Wednesday to face charges over his war on drugs.
The ICC, based in The Hague, believes there are “reasonable grounds” to charge Duterte with murder as a crime against humanity, as an “indirect co-perpetrator” during the anti-drug campaign that rights groups estimate killed tens of thousands.
“I am the one who led our law enforcement and military. I said that I will protect you and I will be responsible for all of this,” Duterte said in a video posted to his and a close advisor’s Facebook pages.
“I have been telling the police, the military, that it was my job and I am responsible,” said the 79-year-old, the first Asian former head of state to appear before the ICC.A spokesman confirmed Duterte was in court custody after he arrived in Rotterdam by private jet.
A vehicle thought to be carrying Duterte drove into the ICC detention centre in The Hague past a crowd of dozens of supporters, some shouting: “Bring him back” and waving national flags.
“There has been no due process,” said caregiver Duds Quibin, 50. “This is kidnapping. They just put him on a plane and brought him here,” he said.
The centre, located close to the North Sea coast, offers each prisoner an individual cell equipped with a computer to work on their case, along with an outdoor exercise area. Duterte will be held there until an initial court appearance, likely in the coming days.
Speaking outside the ICC, Gilbert Andres, a lawyer representing victims of the drug war, said: “ My clients are very thankful to God because their prayers have been answered.” “The arrest of Rodrigo Duterte is a great signal for international criminal justice. It means that no one is above the law,” Andres added.
Before her father’s departure, the Philippines’ Vice-President Sara Duterte said he was being “forcibly taken to The Hague”, labelling the transfer “oppression and persecution”.
On Wednesday, she flew from Manila to be by his side. A media relations officer for the vice-president said that she had since landed in Amsterdam and planned to hold a press conference at The Hague on Friday. The one-time alliance between President Ferdinand Marcos and the Duterte family has exploded spectacularly since the 2022 presidential election when Sara Duterte was Marcos’s running mate. —AFP
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