Edward Mico Joseph Agustin

The Principal Counsel for Victims at the International Criminal Court (ICC) has filed a response in the case of The Prosecutor v. Rodrigo Roa Duterte, deferring to the court's discretion on a Defense request to disqualify a key medical expert.

A picture taken on November 23, 2015 shows the new building of the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague, The Netherlands. AFP PHOTO / ANP / MARTIJN BEEKMAN +++ NETHERLANDS OUT / AFP PHOTO / ANP / Martijn Beekman

Article (news)

Victims’ counsel defers on expert disqualification in former President Duterte’s ICC case, opposes interim release

Bea Cuadra

ABS-CBN News

<p>The Principal Counsel for Victims at the International Criminal Court (ICC) has filed a response in the case of The Prosecutor v. Rodrigo Roa Duterte, deferring to the court&#x27;s discretion on a Defense request to disqualify a key medical expert.</p><div><br/></div><div class="twitter-tweet twitter-tweet-rendered" style="display:flex;max-width:550px;width:100%;margin-top:10px;margin-bottom:10px"><iframe id="twitter-widget-0" scrolling="no" frameBorder="0" allowtransparency="true" allowfullscreen="" title="X Post" src="https://platform.twitter.com/embed/Tweet.html?dnt=false&amp;embedId=twitter-widget-0&amp;features=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%3D%3D&amp;frame=false&amp;hideCard=false&amp;hideThread=false&amp;id=1987956731893452874&amp;lang=en&amp;origin=https%3A%2F%2Fod2-workbench-web.abs-cbn.com%2F%23%2Fworkspace%2Fmonitoring%3Fitem%3Durn%3Anewsml%3Aod2-workbench-api.abs-cbn.com%3A2025-11-10T20%3A32%3A54.589353%3A6497ff73-601b-4771-b0b1-f73de5202655%26action%3Dedit&amp;sessionId=63e14137bc52b0c9132ce512367f678448c7b007&amp;theme=light&amp;widgetsVersion=2615f7e52b7e0%3A1702314776716&amp;width=550px" style="position:static;visibility:visible;width:550px;height:568px;display:block;flex-grow:1" data-tweet-id="1987956731893452874"></iframe></div><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charSet="utf-8"></script><div><br/></div><p>The filing from the Office of Public Counsel for Victims (OPCV) addresses a request by Mr. Duterte’s Defense team seeking the &quot;immediate disqualification&quot; and revocation of the appointment of a recently named, though redacted, expert on the Panel of Experts. </p><p>The Panel was constituted to determine Duterte’s &quot;fitness to stand proceedings&quot; following the postponement of a hearing on the confirmation of charges.</p><p>The Legal Representative, Principal Counsel Paolina Massidda, noted that her office is &quot;not in a position to provide substantive observations&quot; on the disqualification matter, as her earlier endorsement was based &quot;entirely on the information provided by the Registry as regards the former’s credentials and qualifications.&quot;</p><div><br/></div><div class="twitter-tweet twitter-tweet-rendered" style="display:flex;max-width:550px;width:100%;margin-top:10px;margin-bottom:10px"><iframe id="twitter-widget-1" scrolling="no" frameBorder="0" allowtransparency="true" allowfullscreen="" title="X Post" src="https://platform.twitter.com/embed/Tweet.html?dnt=false&amp;embedId=twitter-widget-1&amp;features=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%3D%3D&amp;frame=false&amp;hideCard=false&amp;hideThread=false&amp;id=1987957046663409707&amp;lang=en&amp;origin=https%3A%2F%2Fod2-workbench-web.abs-cbn.com%2F%23%2Fworkspace%2Fmonitoring%3Fitem%3Durn%3Anewsml%3Aod2-workbench-api.abs-cbn.com%3A2025-11-10T20%3A32%3A54.589353%3A6497ff73-601b-4771-b0b1-f73de5202655%26action%3Dedit&amp;sessionId=63e14137bc52b0c9132ce512367f678448c7b007&amp;theme=light&amp;widgetsVersion=2615f7e52b7e0%3A1702314776716&amp;width=550px" style="position:static;visibility:visible;width:550px;height:1120px;display:block;flex-grow:1" data-tweet-id="1987957046663409707"></iframe></div><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charSet="utf-8"></script><div><br/></div><p>In its submission dated November 10, 2025, the OPCV rejected the Defense’s criticism that it should have investigated the expert further, stating it &quot;rejects as unfounded the Defense’s criticism that she ought to have &#x27;conducted a simple google search&#x27;&quot; prior to endorsing the expert. </p><p>The counsel maintained that the administration of the official List of Experts falls within the &quot;exclusive purview of the Registry, as the neutral organ of the Court.&quot;</p><p>While deferring on the expert’s fate, the OPCV stressed that the Panel must retain a specialist in the field. </p><p>“Therefore, the Legal Representative defers entirely to the Chamber’s discretion to resolve the matter, once further clarifications have been obtained from the Registry that might shed light on the issue raised by the Defense,” as stated in the document.</p><p>She &quot;reiterates her position that an expert with qualifications in neuropsychology should be included in the Panel assisting the Chamber in determining Mr Duterte’s fitness to stand trial.&quot; </p><p>Should the Chamber decide to remove the expert, the OPCV respectfully requests that the Chamber &quot;identify another suitable qualified expert with the same specialization.&quot;</p><p>The filing also took a strong stance against a subsidiary request by the Defense. </p><p>The incidental plea for the &quot;immediate interim release of Mr Duterte&quot; based on the potential delay caused by identifying a new expert.</p><p>“For the sake of completeness, the Legal Representative submits that said request — premised on a speculative delay, must be rejected as unfounded at this stage of the proceedings,” as explained in the document.</p><p>The OPCV noted that the matter of release has already been ruled upon by Pre-Trial Chamber I, which previously denied the Defense&#x27;s &quot;Urgent Request for Interim Release&quot; and &quot;Renewed Request for Interim Release&quot; on September 26, 2025. </p><p>The Chamber highlighted that Mr. Duterte&#x27;s detention &quot;continues to remain necessary under article 60(2) of the Statute.&quot;</p><p>The Victims&#x27; Counsel called the Defense’s argument for release &quot;premised on a speculative delay,&quot; adding that the request &quot;must be rejected as unfounded at this stage of the proceedings&quot; since the schedule for assessing fitness to stand trial remains in effect until the Chamber rules on the disqualification request.</p>

<p>The Principal Counsel for Victims at the International Criminal Court has filed a response in the case of The Prosecutor v. Rodrigo Roa Duterte, deferring to the court's discretion on a Defense request to disqualify a key medical expert.</p>

The Principal Counsel for Victims at the International Criminal Court has filed a response in the case of The Prosecutor v. Rodrigo Roa Duterte, deferring to the court's discretion on a Defense request to disqualify a key medical expert.

Victims' counsel defers to ICC discretion on Duterte defense plea to disqualify key expert

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Victims' counsel defers to ICC discretion on Duterte defense plea to disqualify key expert

Bea Cuadra,

ABS-CBN News

Published Nov 11, 2025 07:07 AM PHT

Read More:

ICC

Duterte

The Hague

OPCV

rodrigo duterte

international criminal court

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