ICC wants all parties in Duterte case to submit public versions of documents
Former president Rodrigo Duterte (Photos from the International Criminal Court)
The Appeals Chamber of the International Criminal Court (ICC) has ordered the defense team of former president Rodrigo Duterte, the Office of the Prosecutor, and the Office of Public Counsel for Victims (OPCV) to submit public redacted versions of their filings before the international court.
In a five-page document dated Oct. 27, Appeals Chamber Presiding Judge Luz del Carmen Ibáñez Carranza directed the defense to submit the public redacted version of its Appeal Brief on Interim Release by Oct. 29.
It also ordered the Prosecution and the OPCV to file similar public redacted versions of their submissions—the response to the defense’s appeal brief for the Prosecution and the victims’ response to the defense’s appeal brief for the OPCV—by Oct. 31.
“Regulation 23bis(1) of the Regulations of the Court requires that, should a participant wish to file a document as ‘confidential’, the participant must ‘state the factual and legal basis for the chosen classification’. If there is no such basis, as document should be filed as ‘public’ or ‘public redacted’,” the Appeals Chamber said.
Both orders are in response to the appeal filed by Duterte’s team after the ICC’s pre-trial chamber denied the former president’s interim release application.
This came after the Chamber postponed Duterte’s confirmation of charges hearing on Sept. 23 because he was supposedly unfit to stand trial due to health condition.
Currently, with jurisdiction affirmed by the pre-trial chamber, the defense team is still awaiting for the ruling on its request to adjourn all legal proceedings against the former leader.
Nicholas Kaufman, the former chief executive’s lead counsel, claims that Duterte is suffering from declining cognitive abilities that make him unable to recall events, dates, and family members.
The ICC has already appointed a panel of medical experts to examine and assess Duterte, with a report expected this month.