The International Criminal Court (ICC) has rejected former president Rodrigo Duterte’s bid to appeal a ruling declaring him fit to stand in pre-trial proceedings, even as it authorized 500 additional applicants to participate as victims in the upcoming confirmation of charges hearing.

In a decision dated Feb. 13, the ICC Pre-Trial Chamber I denied the defense’s “Request for Leave to Appeal” its earlier ruling that Duterte is fit to take part in the proceedings.

The defense had sought to elevate the Chamber’s Jan. 26 decision to the Appeals Chamber, arguing that the issue of fitness warranted appellate review.

The Chamber, however, found that the request did not meet the criteria for an interlocutory appeal and ruled that there was no basis to suspend or delay the confirmation process.

With the denial, the finding that Duterte is fit to participate in the pre-trial stage stands, clearing the way for the confirmation of charges hearing scheduled to begin on Feb. 23.

In a separate decision also dated Feb. 13, the Chamber authorized 500 additional applicants to participate in the confirmation proceedings as victims.

The newly admitted participants bring the total number of victims authorized at the confirmation stage to 539.

The Chamber said the additional applicants met the criteria for participation under the Rome Statute and the Court’s rules, following assessment by the Registry.

Joel Butuyan and Gilbert Andres, along with Paolina Massidda of the Office of Public Counsel for Victims, will serve as the common legal representatives of the authorized victims.

The Chamber directed that the victims participate collectively through their common legal representatives to ensure the expeditious conduct of proceedings.

Before this, the Pre-Trial Chamber I allowed both Duterte’s camp and the prosecutors to add new items to their lists of evidence ahead of the confirmation of charges hearing on Feb 23.

In a decision issued before the scheduled proceedings, the Chamber granted the defense leave to include 78 additional items while authorizing the prosecution to submit two more pieces of evidence.

Judges said both sides confirmed they had no objection to each other’s requests, and the Common Legal Representatives of Victims likewise raised no opposition.

The Chamber noted that the proposed additions were limited in scope and relevant to the charges under consideration.

It ruled that allowing the materials would not cause undue prejudice to any party and therefore found good cause to approve the requests.

The confirmation of charges hearing, set from Feb. 23 to 27, will determine whether there is sufficient evidence to establish substantial grounds to believe that Duterte committed each of the crimes charged.

If one or more charges are confirmed, the case will be transferred to a Trial Chamber for full trial proceedings.

Duterte, arrested in March 2025, is suspected of crimes against humanity of murder and attempted murder, allegedly committed in the Philippines between Nov. 1, 2011, and March 16, 2019, in connection with the anti-drug campaign.

The Philippines withdrew from the Rome Statute in 2019, but the ICC has maintained that it retains jurisdiction over alleged crimes committed while the country was still a State Party.

The Chamber’s latest rulings remove two procedural hurdles ahead of the confirmation hearing — rejecting the defense’s attempt to appeal the fitness ruling and expanding victim participation in the proceedings.