Former Philippines leader Duterte seeks removal of ICC judges over jurisdiction dispute

By bno - Jakarta Branch

After failed efforts to get two International Criminal Court (ICC) judges removed from his case, the legal team of ex-Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte is now seeking their recusal. Inquirer They report that the judges may have already predetermined their stance on the court’s jurisdiction over the case, due to their 2021 ruling permitting the ICC prosecutor to look into Duterte’s contentious war on drugs.

On May 12, in an extensive 11-page document, President Rodrigo Duterte’s principal attorney, Nicholas Kaufman, submitted a request for the dismissal of PTC 1 judges Rene Adelaide Alapini-Gansou and Maria del Socorro Flores Liera. These two judges were previously involved with the chamber that initially authorized the investigation to move forward and subsequently endorsed its continuation in 2023 following a period when it was halted.

Kaufman argued that removing the judges would ensure their impartiality and independence, pointing out their previous roles in key legal decisions concerning the case. He stressed that this move would protect Duterte’s entitlement to a just trial.

Previously, on May 6, PTC 1 denied Duterte’s plea for the judges to step aside, stating that procedural guidelines do not allow parties to seek a judge’s removal beforehand.

Kaufman criticised the prosecution, led by Karim Khan, for dismissing the defence’s prior plea for the judges to abstain from ruling on jurisdiction as “nonsensical”. He maintained that the judges should not decide on jurisdiction after already forming a strong opinion before hearing full defence arguments.

He also pointed out that no fresh evidence is likely to alter the judges’ stance on whether the ICC retains jurisdiction following the Philippines’ withdrawal from the Rome Statute in 2019 during Duterte’s presidency.

While framed as a procedural concern, the disqualification request could be read as a strategic effort to stall or delegitimise the ICC’s work. In highly political cases like this, repeated challenges to impartiality may risk shifting focus from accountability to courtroom theatrics.