Former Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte Arrested and Sent to Netherlands to Face Crimes Against Humanity Charges

Philippine police arrested former president Rodrigo Duterte in Manila on Tuesday and sent him by plane to the Netherlands to face charges of crimes against humanity at the International Criminal Court, President Ferdinand Marcos said.

The global court in The Hague had ordered Duterte’s arrest through Interpol after accusing him of crimes against humanity over deadly anti-drug crackdowns he oversaw while in office, Marcos said in a late-night news conference. Duterte had been arrested at the Manila international airport Tuesday morning when he arrived with his family from Hong Kong.

Walking slowly with a cane, the 79-year-old former president turned briefly to a small group of aides and supporters, who wept and bid him goodbye, before an escort helped him into the plane.

His daughter, Vice President Sara Duterte, said she sought entry to the airbase where her father was held but was refused. She criticized the Marcos administration for surrendering her father to a foreign court which currently has no jurisdiction to the Philippines.

Story continues below advertisement

Reaction to the Arrest

Marcos said Duterte’s arrest was “proper and correct” and not an act of political persecution, since the Philippines is a member of Interpol.

2:25
Philippines’ President Duterte announces retirement from politics

Among the most feared leaders in Asia while in power, Duterte became the first ex-leader from the region to be arrested by the global court.

Clad in a dark jacket, an irate Duterte protested his arrest after arrival in Manila and asked authorities the legal basis of his detention. His lawyers immediately asked the Supreme Court to block any attempt to transport him out of the Philippines.

“Show to me now the legal basis for my being here,” Duterte asked authorities in remarks captured on video by his daughter, Veronica Duterte, who posted the footage on social media. “You have to answer now for the deprivation of liberty.”

Story continues below advertisement

ICC Probes Killings During Drug Crackdown

The ICC has been investigating mass killings in crackdowns overseen by Duterte when he served as mayor of the southern Philippine city of Davao and later as president. Estimates of the death toll of the crackdown during Duterte’s presidential term vary, from the more than 6,000 that the national police have reported up to 30,000 claimed by human rights groups.

Get daily National news

Get the day’s top news, political, economic, and current affairs headlines, delivered to your inbox once a day.

The ICC arrest warrant, seen by The Associated Press, said “there are reasonable grounds to believe that” the attack on victims “was both widespread and systematic: the attack took place over a period of several years and thousands people appear to have been killed.”

Story continues below advertisement

0:32
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte votes in midterm elections

Duterte’s arrest was necessary “to ensure his appearance before the court,” the March 7 warrant said. “Mindful of the resultant risk of interference with the investigations and the security of witnesses and victims, the chamber is satisfied that the arrest of Mr. Duterte is necessary.”

In a brief statement after the plane had taken off, the ICC confirmed that one of its pre-trial chambers had issued an arrest warrant for Duterte on charges of “murder as a crime against humanity allegedly committed in the Philippines between Nov. 1, 2011, and March 16, 2019.”

Families of the Slain Celebrate the Arrest

Trending Now

• 

  Snowbirds, take note: The U.S. says these foreign nationals must register

• 

  Ford urges Smith to use oil export tax ‘trump card’ against U.S.: ‘They will lose their minds’

Duterte’s arrest and downfall drove families of slain victims of his crackdown to tears. Some gathered in a street rally to welcome his arrest.

Story continues below advertisement

“This is a big, long-awaited day for justice,” Randy delos Santos told the AP. His teenage nephew was gunned down by police in a dark riverside alley during an anti-drug operation in suburban Caloocan city in August 2017.

“We hope that top police officials and the hundreds of police officers who were involved in the illegal killings should also be placed in custody and punished,” delos Santos said.

Three police officers were convicted in 2018 for the high-profile murder of his nephew, Kian delos Santos, prompting Duterte to suspend his crackdown temporarily.

The conviction was one of only around three so far against law enforcers involved in the anti-drugs campaign. Former Sen. Antonio Trillanes, who led the filing of a complaint against Duterte before the ICC, said the arrest was historic, a major blow to state impunity and tyranny.

“This is like the downfall of an emperor,” Trillanes told the AP. “The next step now is to make sure that all his followers who have committed criminal transgressions like him should also be held to account.”

About The Author