Ace Balangitan

A vlogger claimed the International Criminal Court (ICC) will arrest Former President Rodrigo Duterte.

In a video posted on Facebook last July 17, Mimaa Alicia slammed the ICC over its investigation on Duterte's bloody “War on Drugs.” The caption read, “Huhulihin na sa July 18 si Dating Pangulong Digong.”

The video’s thumbnail contains photos of Former President Duterte, Vice President Sara Duterte, and incumbent President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos with texts reiterating the caption, “JULY 18 AARESTUHIN SI FPRRD. ICC MAY WARRANT OF ARREST NA KAY FORMER PRESIDENT DUTERTE.”



Claim: A Marcos vlogger claimed that the International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant against Former President Rodrigo Duterte on July 18.

Rating: MISLEADING

Conclusion: On the cited date, July 18, 2023, the International Criminal Court’s Appeals Chamber only ruled against the Philippine government's petition to halt the resumption of the probe into Duterte's bloody 'War on Drugs'. No arrest warrant was issued against the former president.


Throughout the 12-minute video, the vlogger read several news articles about the ICC's probe, but she did not provide any evidence of the supposed issuance of an arrest warrant.

The claims made are MISLEADING. While the ICC may issue an arrest warrant or summon any person of interest to The Hague, no pronouncements related to the former president were made thus far. The court only green-lighted the resumption of the investigation on the drug war — nothing further. 

The cited date in the video, July 18, pertains only to the scheduled release of the international court's ruling on the Philippine government's request to halt the court's investigation into the Duterte administration’s drug war.

The said decision junked the Philippines’ appeal against the continuation of the investigation into the killings under Duterte's drug war and alleged Davao Death Squad. 

To recall, the international court in September 2021 formally opened the investigation on the alleged crimes against humanity committed under Duterte from 2011 to 2019 — exposing not only his war on drugs as president but also the Davao Death Squad’s alleged killings during his term as Vice Mayor and Mayor of Davao City. 

In November 2021, ICC Prosecutor Karim Khan temporarily suspended the investigation following the Duterte administration's formal request to stop the probe. 

Khan requested authorization to resume the investigation in June 2022, highlighting the Philippine government’s lack of “concrete and progressive steps” in investigating the nature of these drug-related killings.

In February this year, the Marcos administration requested the Appeals Chamber to suspend the ICC’S earlier decision to resume the investigation, which led to the judgment handed out on July 18, rejecting the government's plea.

Between 2016 and 2022, the anti-illegal drug campaign accounted for an estimated 27,000 to 30,000 killings.


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