President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Tuesday said that former President Rodrigo Duterte was lawfully arrested by Interpol agents on the strength of warrant issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC) for alleged crimes against humanity during the former leader’s bloody war on drugs.
Marcos said that Duterte had been flown out of the Philippines just before midnight, en route to The Hague, where the ICC is based.
Vice President Sara Duterte, the former president’s daughter, criticized the government’s decision, calling it a surrender of Philippine sovereignty. “Today, our own government has handed over a Filipino citizen—even a former president—to foreign powers. This is a blatant affront to our sovereignty and an insult to every Filipino who believes in our nation’s independence,” she said. She also described the arrest as political persecution.
President Marcos rejected claims of persecution, noting that the ICC investigation began in 2017, during Duterte’s presidency, and the Philippines was still a member of the ICC at that time. He noted that the Philippine government cooperated with Interpol, not the ICC, since the country withdrew from the tribunal in 2019. He added that refusing to cooperate with Interpol could hinder efforts to bring fugitives back to the Philippines.
In anticipation of protests following Duterte’s arrest, the police have been placed on high alert.
It is unclear at this stage whether the Supreme Court would still act on petitions questioning Duterte’s arrest.
