What Duterte’s lead counsel Nicholas Kaufman is trying to do on Day 3 of ICC pre-trial

MANILA, Philippines – International law expert Ross Tugade, who is also an accredited assistant to counsel at the International Criminal Court (ICC), said that former president Rodrigo Duterte’s lead defense counsel Nicholas Kaufman was trying to do two things during his presentation on Thursday, February 26: question the intent and knowledge, and avoid any argument on causality. 

Kaufman, during the third day of the ICC pre-trial hearing on Thursday, argued that Duterte had ordered “lawful means” to subdue the alleged drug personalities during his violent anti-illegal drug campaign.

Tugade, however, pointed out that the Rome Statute — the legal document of the ICC — “doesn’t require a legal evaluation on the part of the perpetrator.” 

“It’s not even required for [Kaufman] to demonstrate that he assessed self-defense would be valid in this instance,” Tugade said during a Rappler panel on Thursday. “But intent and knowledge under the framework of the Rome Statute could be that evidence that he meant to engage in the acts that would result in crimes against humanity.”

Duterte is currently detained at the ICC following his arrest on March 11, 2025. He is facing charges related to crimes against humanity over his violent war on drugs that resulted in at least 6,200 deaths in police operations alone by May 2022. The number reaches 30,000, including those killed vigilante-style, as estimated by human rights organizations.

The court is in the process of evaluating the evidence and arguments presented by both the prosecution and the defense to determine whether there are sufficient grounds to move the case forward to a full trial.

– Rappler.com