Vice Pres. Sara Duterte Back in The Hague Following the ICC Interim Release Verdict
SARA DUTERTE – The Vice President has returned to The Hague, Netherlands to visit former Pres. Rodrigo Duterte following the interim release verdict of the International Criminal Court (ICC).
Last November 28, the International Criminal Court held a hearing to decide on the interim release appeal of the camp of former Pres. Rodrigo Roa Duterte but he signed a waiver and skipped the hearing. The former President is detained under the custody of the foreign court since March.
Former Pres. Rodrigo Duterte was represented by his lawyer, British-Israeli Nicholas Kaufman, during the recent ICC hearing on the interim release appeal of his camp. However, the ICC rejected the interim release plea of Duterte’s camp.
The International Criminal Court cited former Pres. Rodrigo Duterte as “high risk”. It junked all three (3) grounds raised by Duterte’s camp which are the following:
- The Pre-Trial Chamber erroneously found that Duterte poses a risk under Article 58(1)(b) of the Rome Statute
- The Pre-Trial Chamber erred in its rejection of the guarantees proposed by the State willing to receive him
- The Pre-Trial Chamber erred in law by failing to take into account humanitarian considerations in assessing the right to interim release.
During the ICC hearing, the family member of former Pres. Rodrigo Duterte who was in The Hague, Netherlands was Davao City Representative Omar Duterte, the son of Davao Congressman Paolo Duterte. He was with his wife and their kids and they immediately visited the former President after the foreign court ruled on the interim release plea.
According to Cong. Omar Duterte, they agreed that they will not mention the ICC’s decision on the interim release appeal to former Pres. Rodrigo Duterte during the visit. He claimed that they only talked about family and joked around.
Recently, Vice Pres. Sara Duterte arrived in The Hague, Netherlands. She was not able to visit her father inside the ICC detention facility for several weeks already. She granted an interview after her visit to former Pres. Rodrigo Roa Duterte.
Based on a post of News5 on social media, Vice Pres. Sara Duterte claimed that she did not mention the ruling of the ICC on the interim release appeal to her father, former Pres. Rodrigo Duterte, during the visit. According to her, they only talked about family and politics.
Vice Pres. Duterte also shared that her father drank Sprite Zero. It is no secret to the public that the former President is fond of drinking Coke.
“Ngayon ang ininum niya Ma’am is Sprite Zero,” she said.
Vice Pres. Sara Duterte revealed that former Pres. Rodrigo Roa Duterte should not be drinking soda because of his diabetes. Based on the post, she was asked if the former Chief Executive also drinks tea.
“Yes, pag-ano ‘yung mga medical personnel ang nagha-handle sa kanya ‘yun lang ang ibinibigay sa kanya pati mga lawyers tsa-a lang,” the Vice President responded.
Previously, following the decision of the ICC to junk the interim release appeal, the Duterte family immediately issued a statement.