The camp of former President Rodrigo Duterte has urged the Appeals Chamber of the International Criminal Court (ICC) to reverse a pre-trial chamber’s ruling that upheld the Court’s jurisdiction over the former leader’s crimes against humanity case, arguing that there is “no legal basis” for the continuation of proceedings or for his continued detention.
In a four-page petition dated Oct. 28 and signed by lead counsel Nicholas Kaufman and assistant counsel Dr. Dov Jacobs, Duterte’s defense team asked the Appeals Chamber to overturn the earlier decision and “to find that there exists no legal basis for the continuation of International Criminal Court proceedings against Mr. Rodrigo Roa Duterte.”
It also requested the Chamber to “order his immediate and unconditional release.”
The appeal was filed under Article 82(1)(a) of the Rome Statute, which allows either party to challenge a decision on jurisdiction. This latest legal move follows the Oct. 23 ruling of Pre-Trial Chamber I, which dismissed the defense’s assertion that the ICC lacked authority to investigate and prosecute Duterte for alleged crimes committed during his administration’s bloody war on drugs.
Duterte’s legal team has also appealed the PTC I’s separate ruling denying his petition for interim release.
Meanwhile, the Office of the Public Counsel for Victims (OPCV) is also urging the Appeals Chamber to deny the former chief executive’s request to reject the decision that ruled for him to remain in detention in The Hague.
Through Principal Counsel Paolina Massidda, the OPCV said the defense failed to demonstrate “clear errors of law or fact” in the pre-trial chamber’s ruling to reject Duterte’s application for interim release.
“Rather, the Defence’s arguments show its mere disagreement with the factual findings of the Chamber. Therefore, the Appeal should be dismissed in its entirety as the Chamber’s reasoning under each condition of article 58(1)(b) of the Rome Statute (the “Statute”) is legally and factually sound, justifying Mr Duterte’s continued detention,” it said in a formal submission on Oct. 28. (Raymund Antonio)
