SC orders memoranda filing on Duterte Hague transfer case

Heads of government agencies, as well as family members of former President Rodrigo Duterte, are required by the Supreme Court to submit their respective memoranda on the consolidated petitions concerning the arrest and transfer of the former President to the Netherlands.

In a notice issued by Clerk of Court Marife Lomibao-Cuevas dated 11 November 2025, the court gave the parties 30 days from receipt of the notice to submit their memoranda.

The Supreme Court asked them to consider the following issues: whether the present controversy is already moot, whether the Court must exercise restraint in view of the ongoing proceedings before the International Criminal Court, and whether a writ of habeas corpus must be issued.

The specific issues the court wanted the respondents to discuss include whether the International Criminal Court possesses and may exercise exclusive jurisdiction over the case of the former President despite the Philippines’ withdrawal from the Rome Statute, and whether Duterte was arrested in accordance with international and domestic laws.

The court instructed all parties to present their arguments on whether the former President was legally arrested in compliance with international and domestic laws.

They are also required to explain if the Red Notice from the International Police (Interpol) is enforceable within the country, similar to a domestic arrest warrant, and whether the arrest violated Duterte’s constitutional and statutory rights.

The consolidated cases are the habeas petitions filed by the Duterte siblings, seeking the release and return of their father from the custody of the International Criminal Court in The Hague.

The siblings argued that the arrest and subsequent surrender of their father to the ICC have no basis, as the Philippines is no longer a member of the international tribunal.

The Philippines formally withdrew from the Rome Statute, which created the ICC, in 2018, with the withdrawal becoming effective in 2019.

The former President was arrested on 11 March after arriving from Hong Kong, where he spoke before a gathering of overseas Filipino workers, and was flown to the custody of the ICC on the same day.

His arrest was based on an ICC warrant stemming from crimes against humanity charges related to extrajudicial killings that occurred under his administration, including his brutal crackdown on illegal drugs.

The siblings accused Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin, former Justice Secretary and now Ombudsman Jesus Crispin Remulla, former PNP Chief Gen. Rommel Francisco Marbil, and former CIDG Director Maj. Gen. Nicolas Torre III of orchestrating their father’s “abduction and transfer” to the ICC in violation of his constitutional rights and the country’s extradition laws.

Duterte is being investigated and charged for crimes committed from 2011 to 2019, while the Philippines was still a member of the ICC.

In its recent ruling, the ICC denied Duterte’s request for interim release.

Lomibao-Cuevas said the parties are also directed to inform the Court of any developments that may be relevant to the instant case.