Since local authorities, on the basis of an arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC) to Interpol, apprehended former President Rodrigo Duterte on 11 March 2025, trolls have been on overdrive, churning out fake news claiming all sorts of things, including the ICC’s granting Duterte an interim release as he awaits trial for alleged crimes against humanity related to his bloody war on drugs.
One fake news posted on social media claiming the former president was set for release with several countries extending him asylum has gained a million views on TikTok.
A photo that has gone viral also on TikTok showed Duterte on his way back to Manila on board a plane with Senate President Chiz Escudero, his wife Heart Evangelista, Senators Bong Go and Alan Cayetano, and former Duterte spokesman Salvador Panelo, among others.
There’s also a post claiming Duterte is about to be released and is getting ready to be transported to Malaysia which, the troll claimed, has offered him political asylum.
The Philippines Trending News channel on Facebook with over half a million subscribers posted that US President Donald Trump had imposed sanctions on four ICC judges for holding Duterte in detention at The Hague.
Well, Trump did impose sanctions on ICC judges Solomy Balungi Bossa of Uganda, Luz del Carmen Ibanez Carranza of Peru, Reine Adelaide Sophie Alapini Cansou of Benin, and Beti Hohler of Slovenia, but it had nothing to do with Duterte. It was due to the ICC’s issuance of an arrest warrant for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the tribunal’s decision to reopen a case on alleged crimes involving US troops in Afghanistan.
Last 5 June, the Facebook page of a Partido Lokal shared a graphic that mimicked media giant ABS-CBN News’ primetime evening newscast TV Patrol, claiming (in Pilipino) that “former President Duterte will now be able to return to the country after several months of detention.”
The Facebook page brazenly used a fake TV Patrol social media card template to make the post appear legitimate.
Even Duterte’s defense team claimed — falsely — that the prosecution had “confirmed its non-opposition to Duterte’s interim release” provided certain terms and conditions were met.
This was debunked by the ICC prosecutor who, on 25 June, was reported to have formally opposed Duterte’s application for interim release.
So much fake news and misinformation is being circulated and one wonders — how do these serve Duterte’s case? Do the perpetrators of such falsehoods actually believe that what they’re doing could influence his case before the ICC in The Hague?
Some supporters of the former president contend the posts could bolster Duterte’s image among his followers who see him as a victim of a biased international justice system.
By claiming that the ICC’s accusations are unfounded and that Duterte is being unfairly targeted, pro-Duterte groups perhaps see the spread of false news as a way to galvanize his supporters and create a narrative of victimization.
Fake news can serve as a tool to reinforce loyalty and diminish the public’s perception of the charges against Duterte. It can also be used to sow doubt about the legitimacy of the ICC’s proceedings, thus bolstering Duterte’s position that he is being unfairly persecuted.
However, the wider impact of such misinformation is more likely to be damaging in the long run. Spreading false information about the ICC’s legal proceedings can erode public trust in Duterte’s credibility.
Once exposed as fake, the posts on social media and elsewhere can only diminish his integrity, showing that his defenders serve only one purpose — as propagators of propaganda rather than fact.
The spread of fake news about Duterte’s interim release is unlikely to pressure the ICC into granting him temporary freedom before his trial.
What should be hammered into the minds of these pushers of falsehood is that international courts like the ICC base their decisions primarily on legal procedures, evidence, and international law, rather than on public opinion or misinformation campaigns.
In the end, all the fake news and wildly concocted misinformation spread by the agents of propaganda can only do the former president more damage, with the ICC prosecutor digging his heels even deeper in pursuing this objective — to put the accused behind bars.