Latest news with #ex-Philippine
AFP
2 days ago
- Politics
- AFP
Altered NATO summit image accompanies false claim leaders secured ex-Philippine president's release
"World leaders gathered at The Hague, Netherlands for a 'Bring Him Home' meeting to talk about the release of former president Rodrigo Duterte," reads part of the Tagalog-language caption of a TikTok video shared on June 26, 2025. It adds that leaders "agreed with the ICC to release FPRRD (former president Rodrigo Roa Duterte) at the soonest possible date". The video, which has been viewed more than 180,000 times, appears to show an image of world leaders such as US President Donald Trump and France's Emmanuel Macron standing behind a cardboard cutout of Duterte. Posters reading "Bring Him Home" can also be seen plastered on walls in the background. The post surfaced after leaders of NATO countries met at The Hague on June 24 and 25, with the Western political and military alliance agreeing to massively ramp up their defence spending to satisfy Trump (archived here and here). The US leader had repeatedly suggested Washington could withhold protection from European countries unwilling to spend more on defence, but signed off on a final declaration confirming an "ironclad commitment" to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization's collective defence pledge that an attack on one is an attack on all. The Hague is also where Duterte has been detained since early March for alleged crimes against humanity tied to his crackdown on drugs that killed thousands of mostly poor men (archived link). Image Screenshot of the false post taken on July 2, 2025, with the red X mark added by AFP The image appearing to show world leaders supporting Duterte was also shared in similar Facebook posts. "Good for Father Digong. Even after his term ended, he is being included by other countries. They must really love him," read a comment on one of the posts, using a nickname for the former president. Another said: "This makes me cry. So touching." While the former Philippine president's defence team have filed a motion for his interim release, ICC prosecutors have formally opposed the application (archived here and here). His request for interim release is not mentioned in the NATO summit's declaration issued on June 25, and Duterte remains in ICC detention as of July 2 (archived link). NATO social dinner A reverse image search on Google of the image accompanying the false posts led to a similar photo posted on NATO's official website on June 24, as part of a slideshow about a social dinner hosted by the Netherland's King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima at the Huis ten Bosch palace (archived link). Unlike in the falsely shared image, no cutout of ex-president Duterte was placed in front of the Dutch royal family nor were any posters plastered on the walls of the royal palace. Image Screenshot comparison of the altered image (left) and the NATO photo (right), with differences highlighted by AFP A similar photo uploaded to AFP's photo archives also shows the circulating image was altered. Subsequent reverse image searches led to photos of a similar cutout of the ex-Philippine president in a March 29 Facebook post by pro-Duterte Senator Ronald dela Rosa (archived link). The "Bring Him Home" posters, meanwhile, correspond to those seen in a March 16 Facebook post shared by staunch Duterte ally Senator Robin Padilla (archived link). AFP has debunked several false claims about the ex-president being released from detention.
Straits Times
12-05-2025
- Politics
- Straits Times
Detained in The Hague, ex-Philippines president Duterte wins hometown mayoral election
With 80 per cent of votes counted in an unofficial tally, Rodrigo Duterte was winning the Davao mayoral contest with eight times more votes than his nearest rival. PHOTO: AFP MANILA - Former Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte was almost certain to be elected mayor of his home city by a landslide on May 12, unimpeded by his detention at the International Criminal Court (ICC) on charges of murder as a crime against humanity. With 80 per cent of votes counted in an unofficial tally, Duterte, who was brought to The Hague in March over his bloody 'war on drugs' that killed thousands of people, was winning the Davao mayoral contest with eight times more votes than his nearest rival. The victory during nationwide mid-term elections is testament to the 80-year-old's enduring influence in the southern city, owing to his reputation as a crime-buster that earned him the nicknames 'Duterte Harry' and 'the Punisher'. Duterte's old Facebook account was flooded with congratulatory messages from supporters, with some calling for his return to serve his people. 'Congratulations, Tatay (father) D! Let's bring him home,' read one of the comments. Duterte could become the first Asian former head of state to go on trial at the ICC. His surprise arrest by Philippine police at the request of the ICC caused outrage among his army of supporters, who called it a kidnapping at the behest of a foreign court. He has defended the anti-drugs crackdown and his legal team says his arrest was unlawful. The ICC maintains it has jurisdiction to prosecute alleged crimes committed before Duterte withdrew the Philippines from its founding treaty in 2019. Despite the ICC's case also including alleged killings of criminal suspects by a 'death squad' in Davao while Duterte was mayor - which he has denied - analysts have said his arrest has only hardened support for him and his family, in Davao and beyond. The former president's two sons were also set to win posts on May 12, one re-elected congressman and the other winning the contest for Davao vice-mayor and likely to serve in his father's absence. The family's political resilience and dominance in Davao could prove pivotal as Duterte's popular daughter, Philippines Vice-President Sara Duterte, faces an impeachment trial that could see her banned from politics for life if convicted, killing off any hopes of a presidential run. Supporters of the arrested ex-Philippine president Rodrigo Duterte chant his name during a solidarity rally in Davao City, on March 28. PHOTO: REUTERS Asked earlier on May 12 about her father's likely victory, she said plans would be made for him to be sworn in as mayor. 'The ICC lawyer said once we get proclamation papers, we will discuss how he can take oath,' she said. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
The Guardian
14-03-2025
- Politics
- The Guardian
The senator, the priest, the forensic pathologist: the people who bought ex-president Duterte to justice
Facing charges of crimes against humanity and hauled off to the Hague, the arrest this week of ex-Philippine president Rodrigo Duterte is a pivotal moment for those seeking justice for the many thousands of lives lost during his reign. Soon after Duterte's inauguration in 2016, the then Philippine leader embarked on a violent crackdown on drugs and crime that catalysed a wave of extrajudicial killings. Rights groups say that up to 30,000 people were killed in Duterte's so-called 'war on drugs'. To some Duterte's arrest this week came as a sudden shock. But for years many brave Filipinos, from priests, politicians, pathologists, to relatives of the victims and journalists, have worked tirelessly, in and out of the spotlight, to expose the horrors of the deadly campaign and collect enough evidence to hold Duterte to account, first at home and now at the International Criminal Court, where the former president will have his first appearance on Friday. Here are some of the key people that played a role. A key figure in the movement to bring Duterte to justice was Father Flaviano, one of several Filipino priests who was deeply critical of the drug wars. At times when the families of victims were too scared to speak out, the church provided an important source of refuge and support, and over the years encouraged witnesses and families to tell their stories. Father Flaviano, in tandem with forensic pathologist Raquel Fortun, also worked together to collect evidence of the extrajudicial killings that could one day be used in court. His initiative Project Arise enabled the bodies of the victims, with their families' permission, to be exhumed from temporary graves and cremated, and then placed in a more permanent location. In the interim Dr Fortun collected evidence about the cause of death, which regularly conflicted the official account. Flaviano said the work allowed them 'to discover systematic patterns on the kind of modus operandi the police and the killers were using in order to eliminate their target'. Asked about how he felt about Duterte's arrest, the priest told the Guardian he was elated. 'This is the feeling of victory that the widows and myself have been simply dreaming of,' he said, 'It's like what scripture says about the people who have walked in darkness all their lives, and have finally seen a great light, a great hope has been revealed to us.' Raquel Fortun's investigation into the 'war on drugs' began in quite unlikely circumstances. It was 2021, about five years had passed since Duterte had launched his crackdown. Many of the families of those killed, who had only been able to afford for short leases on graves, were increasingly facing having the remains of their loved ones evicted from cemeteries. Through Father Flaviano's Project Arise, Fortun, one of only two forensic pathologists in the country, offered families the chance for the remains to be properly examined. She set up a table in the stockroom of her department at the University of the Philippines, and began work. She found frequent and serious irregularities in how postmortems were performed – death certificates that wrongly attributed fatalities to natural causes or bullets left untouched in victims' bodies. Her work has added to a body of evidence contradicting the claims of the authorities. Leila De Lima, was one of the few politicians who dared to speak out against Duterte and his 'war on drugs'. As the then chair of the Senate committee on justice and human rights, she began an inquiry into the killings. De Lima paid a high cost for taking up that challenge. He responded by seeking to publicly humiliate her, and she was eventually jailed for more than six years on baseless charges, the last of which was finally dropped in 2024. Speaking to the Guardian in December, De Lima said she knew the truth would eventually be exposed, and that she expected an arrest warrant could be issued imminently. 'I knew that eventually, truth would prevail, and that is what is happening now,' she said. 'Witnesses are coming out, not any more scared, telling the people, telling their testimony, what they knew about Duterte's 'war on drugs'.' Commenting after Duterte's arrest this week, De Lima said in a statement: 'To those who have fought this long and difficult fight – your voices mattered, your courage mattered, and today, the pursuit of justice continues.' On Tuesday morning Randy Delos Santos' phone began flashing with messages saying that police, Interpol and justice department officials were at the airport in Manila, ready to arrest Duterte. 'I stopped what I was doing immediately to check the news online,' he said. '[I asked myself] Is it true, or am I dreaming?' It was true – Duterte had been taken into custody. Randy went to church to meet other families and the media. He cried, overwhelmed with emotion. 'It felt as if my body was becoming numb,' he said. 'This is a new chapter of hope for us.' More than six years have passed since his nephew, Kian Delos Santos, was shot dead during Duterte's anti-drugs crackdown. Kian was found dead in a dark alley near his home in Caloocan City, bent in a foetal position with a gun in his hand. Police claimed that Kian had shot at them and they acted in self-defence, a common claim made by the authorities at the time. Kian's death at just 17 years old prompted unprecedented public outrage and protests, and it was one of just a handful of cases that led to convictions. But even in a case as high profile as Kian's, securing justice was an uphill battle for his family. 'The burden is on us to look for physical evidence and testimonies,' he said. There were times when Randy ate fried banana for his dinner, because he had spent all his money paying for transport to court. After Kian's death Randy began working for the Arnold Janssen Kalinga Foundation, founded Father Flaviano, supporting other families whose loved ones had been killed. Many were too afraid to speak out, fearing retaliation. Randy has given evidence to the ICC investigation and says he will do so again if needed. He hopes the court will not stop at Duterte and will hold other high-ranking officials to account. 'I hope they continue to go after and hold accountable those who have become abusive of their power,' he said. He has forgiven Duterte, he added. 'But he needs to face [the charges] and be accountable for the sin he committed – for the country, not just for Kian.' Filipino photographer Raffy Lerma knew something had changed when he covered one of the first killings during the early days of Duterte's drug war. 'I remember the first crime scene I went to. I knew that night something was different. Why? I remember one reaction was that people were cursing them [the victims], saying they deserved to die … For me that was the start,' he recalled, 'There was no empathy and I knew something had changed.' Photographers like Lerma, assigned to the night shift, were tasked with covering the grisly murders that occurred in the middle of the night – in the early days sometimes multiple times a night. The collective group of photographers have since been dubbed the 'night crawlers'. One image that Lerma took, shot in July 2016, features a woman cradling her partner after being shot to death by motorcycle-riding gunmen encapsulates the horror of that time. Despite the wave of killings, Duterte commanded widespread popularity at the start of his presidency, and with a flood of fake news, some denied the magnitude of the deaths. Lerma says the work of photographers and journalists helped counter the flood of misinformation and expose the reality on the ground. 'It gave the official evidence it was happening,' he said. When Filipinos questioned whether the killings were occurring Lerma said: 'I showed my photographs, I told them, you cannot deny, I saw this. And these are my photographs to prove it. I was there.'
Al Jazeera
11-03-2025
- Politics
- Al Jazeera
Rodrigo Duterte
Video shows ex-Philippine President Duterte arrested at Manila airport on ICC warrant over drug crackdown.
