Former Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has appeared in person at the International Criminal Court in The Hague for the first time since his arrest, ahead of his trial on charges of crimes against humanity.
The 81-year-old, dressed in a dark suit and white shirt, attended a status hearing on Wednesday but did not speak during proceedings. He waved to family members seated in the public gallery as the hearing concluded. It was the first time he had been seen in person at the court; previous appearances were conducted by video link, and he had skipped several hearings altogether.
Duterte has been detained at The Hague since March 2025, when he was arrested at Manila airport. He faces charges relating to his war on drugs, which prosecutors allege saw tens of thousands of low-level drug dealers summarily executed. The campaign was the centrepiece of his presidency, which ran from 2016 to 2022, with Duterte arguing that restoring peace and order was essential to economic growth.
The ICC's case examines killings from 1 November 2011, when Duterte was mayor of the southern city of Davao, through to 16 March 2019, when he withdrew the Philippines from the court's jurisdiction. A first trial date has been set for 30 November.
Wednesday's hearing was convened after Duterte's legal team argued that his deteriorating health had left him unfit to stand trial. His lawyer, Peter Haynes, told the court his client was suffering from "significant memory impairment" that made it impossible for him to engage meaningfully with his defence. Prosecutors have disputed this assessment.
Judges have ordered an independent medical evaluation by three specialists to determine Duterte's mental fitness to stand trial. That assessment has not been made public, but according to the news agency AFP, defence lawyers say it indicates Duterte believes he is living in 2007 or 2008, that he thinks he is 84 or 85 years old, and that he was unable to recall the name of Donald Trump.
Relatives of those killed during the anti-drugs campaign followed the hearing via livestream in Manila. Llore Pasco, who lost two sons in the crackdown, told Reuters: "We're happy that he has finally appeared and that he looks OK. In fact, he looks like he has put on weight." Randy Delos Santos, whose teenage nephew was killed in 2017, told AFP he was pleased to see Duterte in court, adding: "We hope that his being physically fit will help speed up the hearings." Reports from the courtroom said relatives of victims cheered when Duterte appeared.
Duterte first disclosed in 2019, while still in office, that he had myasthenia gravis, an autoimmune condition that affects nerve function. He was 71 when elected in 2016, making him the oldest Philippine president at the time of taking office.
The former leader's appearance in court comes amid a wider political struggle within his family for influence over Philippine politics. His daughter, Vice-President Sara Duterte, has been engaged in an increasingly bitter dispute with President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos. The collapse of the political alliance between the Duterte and Marcos families, which had delivered them a landslide victory in the 2022 elections, is widely seen as having paved the way for Rodrigo Duterte's arrest in March 2025.
Sara Duterte is regarded as a leading contender to succeed Marcos in the 2028 presidential election, as the current constitution bars him from seeking a second term. She is, however, simultaneously facing an impeachment trial that could end her political career. She has been charged with misusing public funds and with threatening to have Marcos, First Lady Liza Araneta-Marcos, and Marcos's cousin, congressman Ferdinand Martin Romualdez, assassinated. If convicted, she would be disqualified from holding public office.
The ICC's deliberations over Duterte's fitness to stand trial are expected to continue as the 30 November trial date approaches, with judges yet to rule on the findings of the medical assessment.
