Meridian World Desk
Judges at the International Criminal Court have ruled that former Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte, 81, is fit to stand trial on charges of crimes against humanity linked to his anti-drug campaign, rejecting a defence request to suspend proceedings indefinitely on medical grounds.
The ruling followed an assessment by an independent panel of three medical experts, who found that Duterte, despite age-related physical and mental slowing, has the capacity to understand the charges against him, follow courtroom proceedings, enter a plea and discuss his defence with his lawyers. Judges relied on that assessment in denying the defence motion.
The decision clears the way for Duterte’s trial to open on 30 November at the court’s seat in The Hague. Prosecutors allege he bears criminal responsibility for killings carried out during the crackdown on illegal drugs that defined much of his political career, first as mayor of Davao City and then as president of the Philippines from 2016 to 2022.
A case years in the making
Duterte was arrested in the Philippines in March 2025 and surrendered to the ICC, where he has since been held in custody. In January 2026, the court’s Pre-Trial Chamber had already found him fit to take part in pre-trial proceedings and rejected an earlier defence request for an indefinite adjournment. A confirmation of charges hearing followed in February, and in April the Pre-Trial Chamber unanimously confirmed all charges against him and committed him to trial.
The charges stem from allegations that Duterte directed a campaign of extrajudicial killings carried out by police and allied gunmen against suspected drug users and dealers. Prosecutors have presented evidence tying him to killings in dozens of specific incidents. Estimates of the total death toll from the crackdown vary widely, from more than 6,000 killings recorded by police to as many as 30,000 claimed by human rights organisations.
Randy delos Santos, whose teenage nephew was killed by police during the campaign, has called for accountability to extend beyond Duterte to the police officials who carried out the killings.
Testing the court’s reach
The case marks the first prosecution by the ICC of a former Asian head of state and is being closely watched as a test of the court’s ability to pursue sitting and former national leaders for crimes committed while in office. The Philippines withdrew from the Rome Statute, the treaty that established the ICC, during Duterte’s presidency, but the court has maintained that it retains jurisdiction over crimes committed while the country was still a member.
The defence had argued in recent months that Duterte’s cognitive condition warranted further neurological testing before any trial could proceed. The medical panel’s findings, and the judges’ reliance on them, now stand as the basis for pressing ahead.
Duterte has not entered a plea. His trial, when it opens, will centre on whether prosecutors can establish that he bore individual criminal responsibility for the killings carried out during the drug war, rather than simply overseeing a police force that acted on its own initiative. The proceedings are expected to draw significant international attention as the first full ICC trial of a former Asian leader on charges of crimes against humanity.