MANILA, Philippines — The legal team of former president Rodrigo Duterte is pushing for the termination of his trial at the International Criminal Court (ICC), claiming that he is suffering from a “deteriorating cognitive condition” affecting his memory and functions.
The ICC on Thursday night released the public redacted version of the defense request for the indefinite adjournment of the proceedings.
In the request originally filed on Aug. 18, the defense claimed that Duterte “is not fit to stand trial as a result of cognitive impairment in multiple domains.”
“Mr. Duterte’s condition will not improve and, for this reason, the Pre-Trial Chamber must adjourn all legal proceedings in his case indefinitely,” read the request signed by Duterte’s lead defense counsel Nicholas Kaufman.
Kaufman earlier confirmed that Duterte’s medical condition is “progressively deteriorating” and urged the Marcos administration to allow him to return to the Philippines.
The ICC Pre-Trial Chamber I has postponed the scheduled confirmation of hearing charges on Sept. 23 to give judges more time to resolve the request for indefinite adjournment.
In the latest request, the defense cited medical examinations conducted on the former president while in detention.
“With his impaired memory and concomitant inability to retain new information or to recall events, places, timing or even members of his close family and Defense team, Mr. Duterte is unable to fully understand the nature and implications of the proceedings conducted against him,” Kaufman argued.
“His deficient memory also entails an inability to follow the litigation and to make informed decisions. Consequently, and crucially, Mr. Duterte is unable to contribute to his own defense, rendering his participation in the proceedings totally ineffective,” he added.
He claimed that Duterte’s condition is expected to remain static or deteriorate even further, even with medical or psychiatric intervention.
“Mr. Duterte lacks the capacity to apply the cognitive skills essential for the proper conduct of his defense. In fact, he is not even able to process the reasons for his detention,” the defense lawyer claimed.
“In these circumstances, the pursuit of legal proceedings against… [an] incapacitated individual must be terminated,” he added.
Not sufficient
For the ICC prosecutor, the initial submissions of the defense are not sufficient proof of Duterte’s medical condition.
It urged pre-trial chamber to order additional medical reports or examinations of Mr. Duterte to fully determine his fitness to stand trial.
“An additional medical evaluation of Mr. Duterte is necessary because the Prosecution disputes the Defense’s position that Mr. Duterte is ‘not fit to stand trial’ and the currently untested findings of the Defense Experts,” ICC Deputy Prosecutor Mame Mandiaye Niang said in a separate filing dated Sept. 11.
“To ensure an expeditious adjudication on the question of Mr. Duterte’s fitness to stand trial, the Prosecution proposes that the Chamber sets a schedule that would allow for this issue to be adjudicated by such time that would still allow a confirmation of charges hearing to be completed before the end of 2025,” he added.
Victims of Duterte’s drug war have also pushed for the resumption of the proceedings against the former president at the ICC.
“Duterte is notorious for drama and antics of obfuscation. And Filipinos have seen this tactic one time too many,” the Rise Up for Life and Rights coalition said.
For one of the lawyers representing drug war victims, “cognitive decline” does not necessarily render former president Duterte unfit for trial.
In an interview with “Storycon” on One News, Kristina Conti, an accredited ICC assistant to counsel, said Duterte’s supposed condition is not just a medical issue but “technically a legal construct.”
She cited previous statements of Duterte’s children showing that the former president is aware of and familiar with the issues surrounding his case.
Being forgetful or having mental decline, she said, does not mean that “someone is unfit for trial.”
Conti, however, clarified that there is no declaration yet from the ICC. “The judges just postponed the Sept. 23 (hearing) while they are confirming (Duterte’s condition),” she said in Filipino.
“No one has said that he is unfit for trial except the defense experts,” she added.