ICC submits second batch of evidence against Duterte

The International Criminal Court's (ICC) Prosecution has submitted a second batch of evidence, containing 139 items, to Rodrigo R. Duterte's defense team in the crimes against humanity case against him.

This submission, dated May 5 and disclosed on April 30 by Prosecutor Karim Khan, includes four disclosure packages: contextual elements (28 items), modes of liability (85 items), a murder case from Davao City during his mayoral term (1 item), and Barangay Clearance Operations murders during his presidency (15 items).

The prosecution has also prepared two witnesses, 16 hours of audio-video files, and nearly 9,000 pages of documents for the confirmation of charges scheduled on September 23.

ICC-accredited lawyer Gilbert Andres noted that this new evidence aims to demonstrate an official policy behind Duterte's drug war killings and their widespread or systematic nature, a claim denied by Duterte and his aides.

Duterte's legal team challenged the tribunal’s jurisdiction on May 1, arguing that since the Philippines is no longer a state party to the Rome Statute, there is no basis for continuing proceedings, but the ICC has rejected this bid.