While the families of the victims of former Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte’s “war on drugs” and human rights groups have welcomed his arrest and transfer to the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague, the Netherlands, as a step towards justice, his supporters have opposed it, terming it political persecution.
“This is a big, long-awaited day for justice,” Randy delos Santos, the uncle of a teenager killed in an anti-drug operation in 2017, told The Associated Press. “At least he [Duterte] has been given the chance to defend his side, unlike the victims of his war on drugs.”
“For years, we have been fighting for recognition of our loved ones’ deaths. This feels like a turning point,” said another family member who wished to remain anonymous.
Duterte, 79, was arrested on March 11, 2025, based on an ICC warrant over his controversial six-year drug campaign that resulted in thousands of fatalities. The charges against him include murder as a crime against humanity under Article 7(1)(a) of the Rome Statute. He is accused of being an indirect co-perpetrator of extrajudicial killings carried out by both law enforcement and vigilante groups under his administration.
Initially, the prosecution also alleged crimes against humanity of torture and rape, but these were not retained in the arrest warrant due to insufficient evidence linking them to a widespread and systematic attack.
The Philippine authorities arrested him with Interpol’s assistance when he arrived at Manila airport from Hong Kong. He was detained at Villamor Air Base. News reports indicate that he was flown out of the country just hours later.
The former president has offered no apologies for his brutal anti-drugs crackdown. Instead, he questioned the basis for the arrest warrant, asking: “What is the crime I committed? … You have to answer for the deprivation of liberty,” in a video posted on Instagram by his daughter, Veronica Duterte, after his arrest.
One social media user on X (formerly Twitter) thanked the ICC, saying that the former president has to pay for his crimes against humanity. “Filipino people are overjoyed with his arrest. But his accomplices are still free; Ronald dela Rosa and Bong Go,” he added.
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Ronald dela Rosa was the chief of the Philippine National Police during Duterte’s administration and was the lead enforcer of the government’s anti-drug campaign. He was included in the ICC investigation and currently serves as a senator.
Bong Go is also a senator and previously served in the Duterte Cabinet as Special Assistant to the President and Head of the Presidential Management Staff.
Leila de Lima, a former senator who was jailed for six years under Duterte on politically motivated charges (she spoke out against the “war on drugs” campaign), stated: “Today, Duterte is being made to answer — not to me, but to the victims, to their families, to a world that refuses to forget. This is not about vengeance. This is about justice finally taking its course.”
Elsewhere, Human Rights Watch deputy Asia director Bryony Lau said that Duterte’s arrest is “a critical step for accountability in the Philippines”, adding that “it could bring victims and their families closer to justice and sends the clear message that no one is above the law”.
At the same time, the International Coalition for Human Rights in the Philippines (ICHRP) described it as a day when “the arc of the moral universe bent toward justice”, words seconded by Josalee Deinla of the National Union of Peoples’ Lawyers, which represents drug war victims.
“Justice is finally catching up to Duterte, whose policies normalised impunity for state-sponsored violence,” Deinla added.
Silingan Coffee, a shop in the capital Manila run by victims’ families, offered discounts to commemorate the day of Duterte’s arrest.
Supporters condemn arrest ‘oppression and persecution’
For Duterte’s supporters, news of his arrest was not a cause for celebration. Some of them rallied outside the detention site while others staged protests in Davao City, the former president’s stronghold.
Another daughter, Sara Duterte, Vice President of the Philippines and an influential figure despite her ongoing impeachment motions and corruption scandals, denounced the arrest and transfer to the ICC as unlawful. She was scheduled to travel to The Hague to organise his defence team.
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According to Al Jazeera, quoting local news outlet Rappler, a statement from her office on Wednesday, March 12, 2025, said she had boarded a morning flight to Amsterdam to help organise her father’s legal team in the Netherlands.
In an earlier statement, Sara said her father was “being forcibly taken to The Hague” in what amounted to “oppression and persecution”.
“This is a blatant affront to our sovereignty and an insult to every Filipino who believes in our nation’s independence,” she said.
Former presidential spokesperson Salvador Panelo argued the ICC lacks jurisdiction since the Philippines withdrew from the Rome Statute in 2019, calling the detention “unlawful”.
Senator Bong Go, a close ally, pleaded for Duterte’s safety.
The Manila Times reported that on March 11, 2025, Senator Dela Rosa filed a petition before the Supreme Court, requesting that anyone arrested under the ICC warrant be released. He also sought a court order to stop the Philippine government from cooperating with the ICC and to declare any such cooperation unconstitutional.
In contrast, opposition lawmakers and critics welcomed the arrest as a triumph for the rule of law. Senator Risa Hontiveros urged the government to “ensure justice will run its full course,” while ACT Teachers Representative France Castro called it a “concrete step toward accountability”. Kabataan Representative Raoul Manuel noted the irony that Duterte, unlike his victims, would receive due process.
Duterte’s legacy and ICC intervention
Duterte’s presidency between 2016 and 2022 was defined by his ruthless anti-drug campaign, which he first championed as mayor of Davao City. When he became president, a brutal crackdown ensued that saw thousands killed. Official figures cite 6,200 deaths in police operations, but human rights groups estimate the toll could exceed 30,000, including victims of vigilante-style killings and unexplained disappearances. Many victims were young, impoverished men from urban slums, often targeted without due process.
The campaign involved both police operations and vigilante violence, with reports of armed men on motorbikes targeting suspected drug dealers and users. Critics say that these individuals were denied their right to due process, which worsened the widespread human rights abuses.
The ICC officially opened investigations into the situation in the Philippines in 2021, focused on alleged crimes against humanity committed between November 1, 2011, when Duterte was mayor of Davao City, to March 16, 2019, when the Philippines formally withdrew from the ICC’s Rome Statute. Despite the withdrawal, the court asserted jurisdiction over crimes committed while the country was a member, arguing that domestic investigations were insufficient to address systemic atrocities. The ICC’s pre-trial chamber emphasised that the killings were “widespread and systematic,” meeting the threshold for crimes against humanity.
Duterte was arrested as he returned from a political campaign in Hong Kong, where he sought support for his party’s mid-term election candidates. He was served an Interpol Red Notice based on the ICC’s warrant, which cited the need to prevent witness tampering and ensure his appearance in court. The Philippine National Police escorted him to Villamor Air Base.
Key to the arrest was the cooperation of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr, Duterte’s successor. Initially resistant to ICC involvement, Marcos shifted his stance amid a public rift with the Duterte family. Marcos’ administration acknowledged the legal obligation to enforce the warrant.
“At a time when too many governments renege on their ICC obligations while others attack or sanction international courts, Duterte’s arrest is a huge moment for the power of international law. The Philippine government has taken a resolute step and should be commended for it, but accountability must not stop here. The ICC investigation covers only some of the crimes committed over the past decade,” Agnes Callamard, Secretary General of Amnesty International, said in praise of the cooperation.
Duterte’s health – he uses a cane – could complicate proceedings, though authorities confirmed he is medically stable. If tried, he would be the first Asian ex-head of state prosecuted by the ICC.
