Kitty Duterte renews plea before SC over father’s detention

Veronica “Kitty” Duterte has filed a second urgent motion before the Supreme Court seeking the immediate resolution of consolidated habeas corpus petitions questioning the arrest, transfer, and continued detention of her father, former president Rodrigo Duterte, in connection with proceedings before the International Criminal Court (ICC).

In a statement released Tuesday, the lawyer Paolo Panelo said the motion also asked the High Court to direct government respondents to “facilitate the immediate return” of Duterte to the Philippines.

The motion, filed on behalf of Kitty Duterte, pertains to consolidated habeas corpus petitions under G.R. Nos. 278763, 278768, and 278798, which were filed on March 12, 2025.

According to Panelo, 14 months have passed since the petitions were filed without “substantive action” from the Supreme Court despite the “extraordinary and summary nature” of habeas corpus proceedings.

“The Rule of Law demands an immediate resolution to the consolidated petitions. The prolonged delay, coupled with the latest developments, has created a constitutional crisis that can no longer be ignored,” Panelo said in a statement.

The motion cited Senate Resolution No. 44, adopted on 17 March 2026, which expressed the Senate’s position against “extrajudicial rendition” and called for safeguards to ensure Filipinos facing surrender or extradition are given reasonable time to seek relief before Philippine courts.

The filing also came a day after tensions erupted in the Senate over an alleged ICC arrest warrant against Senator Ronald dela Rosa.

On 11 May, senators cited agents of the National Bureau of Investigation in contempt following an attempt to enforce the warrant inside Senate premises, triggering a standoff between the Senate and the NBI. The Senate later granted protective custody to dela Rosa.

The motion argued that the incident underscored the urgency of the petitions, claiming the Executive branch had used the Supreme Court’s silence “as a license to perpetrate the same grave constitutional violations complained of in the petitions.”

The Duterte camp asked the High Court to declare the former president’s arrest, rendition, and continued detention “illegal and unconstitutional” and to order respondents to take “all available steps” to secure his return.

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