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Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider National devider VP Sara cites gun violence in Philippines to question ICC drug war case against ex-President Duterte

VP Sara cites gun violence in Philippines to question ICC drug war case against ex-President Duterte

Vice President said gun violence in the country is so rampant that gunmen can be hired for as little as P5,000

Published Jul 30, 2026 06:24 pm

At A Glance

  • VP Sara Duterte said widespread gun violence makes it difficult to conclude that all alleged ICC victims were killed as part of the anti-drug campaign.
  • She questioned the ICC's evidence, citing changes in the reported number of alleged victims over time.
  • The Vice President maintained that her father's anti-drug campaign does not constitute a crime against humanity and renewed her call for his release.
Vice President Sara Duterte argues that widespread gun violence in the Philippines makes it difficult to conclude that all alleged victims cited in the ICC case were killed as part of former President Rodrigo Duterte's anti-drug campaign. (Screengrab: OVP)
Vice President Sara Duterte argues that widespread gun violence in the Philippines makes it difficult to conclude that all alleged victims cited in the ICC case were killed as part of former President Rodrigo Duterte's anti-drug campaign. (Screengrab: OVP)
Vice President Sara Duterte argued that the prevalence of gun violence in the Philippines makes it difficult to conclude that all alleged victims cited in the International Criminal Court's (ICC) case against former President Rodrigo Duterte were killed as part of the government's anti-drug campaign.
Speaking before supporters in The Hague, Netherlands, on July 29, Duterte questioned the basis for classifying all alleged victims in the ICC case as victims of the drug war, saying that other motives, such as personal disputes or ordinary criminality, could also explain the killings.
"How a program is implemented, whether there were mistakes, errors, or whether it was a bad program, is not a crime against humanity," Duterte said, referring to her father's anti-drug campaign, "Tokhang."
"That is the crime that they are saying that President Duterte has done to the Filipino people. That is not a crime against the Filipino population," she added.
Gun violence cited
Duterte said gun violence remains widespread in the country, arguing that contract killings and other violent crimes occur for reasons unrelated to anti-drug operations.
"They cannot even say right now if the victims are truly victims of the drug war because gun violence is so common in the Philippines," Duterte said.
She cited, for instance, that a wife whose husband has a mistress could hire a gunman for P5,000 to kill the mistress.
"I have a husband. My husband has a mistress. I can hire a gunman for P5,000 to kill the mistress. That is how, for P5,000, that is how bad gun violence in the Philippines is," Duterte said.
"And that is, again, yes, EJK. So how can you say that all your listed victims, all your listed complainants, are supposed victims of the drug war?" she added.
Duterte also said killings could stem from crimes of passion, robbery, or other motives, making it inappropriate, in her view, to attribute all recorded deaths to the government's anti-drug campaign.
Questions on ICC evidence
Duterte also questioned the ICC's evidence, noting that the reported number of alleged victims had changed over time.
She said media reports had previously cited around 30,000 deaths, which she claimed were later reduced to about 13,000 before the ICC case eventually focused on 32 counts of murder.
She argued that these figures raise questions about the prosecution's allegations of crimes against humanity.
READ: 
https://mb.com.ph/2026/07/30/icc-has-no-jurisdiction-over-ex-president-dutertes-case-vp-sara
Defends Duterte's drug war
The Vice President maintained that her father's anti-drug campaign implemented a government policy of zero tolerance against illegal drugs and argued that carrying out such a policy—regardless of whether it reflected good or bad governance—does not, by itself, amount to a crime against humanity.
She also reiterated her call for the immediate release of the former president, saying he poses no flight risk, would not interfere with the investigation, and should not remain under detention while the case is pending.
RELATED STORY: 
https://mb.com.ph/2026/07/30/vp-sara-calls-for-immediate-release-of-ex-president-rodrigo-duterte-says-icc-detention-is-unjust

Related Tags

VP Sara Duterte gun violence Philippines Rodrigo Duterte drug war ICC case crimes against humanity
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