MANILA, Philippines — The International Criminal Court's (ICC) Office of the Prosecutor filed observations requesting extended deadlines for key pre-trial submissions in the case against former president Rodrigo Duterte.
The filing, submitted to Trial Chamber III, asks the court to allow applications related to witness testimony and in-court protective measures to be filed on a rolling basis through October 2026, rather than adhering to the tighter schedule used in a prior ICC case.
Deputy Prosecutor Mame Mandiaye Niang cited heavy workload as the primary justification. The prosecution faces a simultaneous obligation to complete disclosure, submit a trial brief, and file a final witness list and evidence list — all by Aug. 31, 2026. That deadline is one month earlier than the prosecution had originally proposed.
The chamber, presided over by Judge Joanna Korner, alongside Judges Keebong Paek and Nicolas Guillou, directed parties at a May 27 status conference to propose any amendments to procedural directions modeled on those used in the Ali Kushayb case.
Specifically, the prosecution is requesting that rule 68(2) applications — covering prior recorded testimony — be filed no later than September 30. Rule 68(3) applications for witnesses scheduled to testify in 2026 would share that deadline, while applications for remaining witnesses would be due October 30. Applications for in-court protective measures would also fall under the October 30 deadline.
The prosecution noted that the Legal Representatives of the Victims agreed to the proposed deadlines. The defense, however, declined to accept the rule 68 timeline and took no position on the protective measures deadline.
Duterte is suspected of crimes against humanity — specifically murder and attempted murder — allegedly committed as part of a widespread and systematic attack against a civilian population in the Philippines between November 2011 and March 2019, in the context of his administration's "war on drugs" campaign.
All charges against Duterte were confirmed by Pre-Trial Chamber I in April 2026, following a confirmation hearing in February. The ICC's jurisdiction in the case was also upheld by the Appeals Chamber in April, after the defense challenged it. Trial Chamber III subsequently scheduled the opening of the trial for Nov. 30, 2026.
