Rodrigo Duterte, the former leader of the Philippines, did not show up for his first court hearing at the International Criminal Court in The Hague on Friday ( Mar 14), where he is facing murder charges stemming from his “war on drugs.”
Presiding Judge Iulia Motoc told the judge that the 79-year-old Duterte was exhausted after flying to the Netherlands from the Philippines following his arrest and was permitted to attend the conference via video website.
He traveled” a longer distance with a significant time change,” she said.
Duterte’s identity and age were confirmed by a blue suit and tie and an appearance of sick.
Duterte arrived in the Netherlands on a journey from Manila on Wednesday, and he was taken into custody by the ICC after being detained on an ICC permit.
He has been charged with crimes against humanity because of what they call a organized attack on the community. During the assault, dozens of reportedly drug traffickers and people were killed when dying squads he allegedly used carried out extensive extrajudicial killings.
Duterte was flown on a chartered plane to the Rotterdam airports, where he was later transferred to a detention facility just outside the ICC tower. He took accountability for his behavior in a digital information posted on social media.
Duterte, who led the Philippines from 2016 to 2022, is expected to be the first erstwhile Asian head of state to face charges at the ICC, a court of last resort established more than 20 years ago to sue people for war atrocities, crimes against humanity, anger, and murder.