5 days ago
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March 11, 2025 | 03:10 pm
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Former Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte questioned the legal grounds for his arrest by the police on Tuesday, March 11, 2025. According to ABS-CBN, Philippine authorities acted on an International Criminal Court (ICC) warrant citing crimes against humanity linked to Duterte’s war on drugs.
A viral video posted by his daughter, Veronica, on social media shows Duterte seated at what appears to be Villamor Air Base. After arriving at Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) from Hong Kong, he is seen confronting authorities about the legal basis for his detention.
“What is the law and what is the crime that I committed? Explain to me now the legal basis for my being here as apparently I was brought here not of my own volition. It’s somebody else’s,” Duterte stated.
“You have to answer now for the deprivation of liberty… Have you read the case at the time you made the arrest so that you should be guided on what you should know?" he added.
Former Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea also challenged the ICC’s warrant, calling it "questionable."
"Do you know that he hasn't even been served with what charges he's being charged with now? He doesn't know. All the charges against him are in the newspaper," Medialdea said.
“You are the prosecutor general. You know how to exercise due process. You know before you can file charges you have to file a complaint, we have to file a counter affidavit,” he argued.
Medialdea further emphasized that the Philippines had long withdrawn from the ICC, which no longer holds jurisdiction over the country.
"Don't you realize that we are doing this, that we are following an entity that we are no longer a member of, that we have withdrawn," he asserted.
Duterte was accompanied by his partner, Honeylet, and their daughters, Veronica and Mira. Earlier this week, he stated multiple times that he was prepared to face arrest or even imprisonment.
"All I ask of you is that since this is my luck in life, it's okay, I'll accept it. We can't do anything if we're locked up," Duterte told overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) in Hong Kong on Sunday.
Before leaving Hong Kong, Duterte dismissed the need for a large police presence at NAIA, stating he was willing to surrender voluntarily.
"I'm not like that, playing hide and seek. I became president, who am I hiding from? Police? Army? Who? ICC? I've been waiting for that for a long time since I was still vice mayor," he said in an interview with SMNI.
“If they want to arrest me, I will go to them,” he added.
The Malacañang Presidential Palace later confirmed that the ICC prosecutor had issued a "notice of arrest warrant" against Duterte for alleged crimes against humanity.
The case stems from thousands of extrajudicial killings recorded during Duterte’s presidency, during which he repeatedly urged police—through public speeches—to kill drug users and dealers.
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