Former Philippine president Rodrigo Duterte’s arrest on Tuesday marked a long-awaited day of retribution for the thousands killed in his war on drugs, which largely defined his term in office.
To continue reading, subscribe to Eco‑Business.
There's something for everyone. We offer a range of subscription plans.
- Access our stories and receive our Insights Weekly newsletter with the free EB Member plan.
- Unlock unlimited access to our content and archive with EB Circle.
- Publish your content with EB Premium.
The 79-year old politician was taken into custody after he was served the notification for a warrant of arrest from the International Criminal Court (ICC), shortly when he arrived in the Philippines from Hong Kong. Within hours, he was already on a chartered jet bound for The Hague in the Netherlands, where the ICC sits.
He has defended his actions, offering “no apologies” for his brutal anti-drugs crackdown, which saw thousands of Filipinos executed when he was in power from 2016 to 2022.
His allies have denounced the arrest, calling it “unlawful” as the Philippines withdrew from the ICC in 2019, but the court previously said it had jurisdiction in the country over alleged crimes before its pull out as a member.
Advocates have hailed Duterte’s detention as a “hopeful sign for victims in the Philippines and beyond”.
“It shows that suspected perpetrators of the worst crimes, including government leaders, can and will face justice, wherever they are in the world. At a time when too many governments renege on their ICC obligations while others attack or sanction international courts, Duterte’s arrest is a huge moment for the power of international law,” said Agnes Callamard, secretary general of Amnesty International.
Eco-Business examines the impacts of Duterte’s war on drugs on law and civil society in the Southeast Asian nation, and asks if meaningful change could happen in the country’s environmental justice and human rights space because of it.
Youth activists call for justice for victims of extrajudicial killings under former President Rodrigo Duterte’s war on drugs at the Ateneo de Manila University campus. Image: Akbayan
What is the ICC case?
The ICC, an intergovernmental organisation that investigates and tries individuals charged with the gravest crimes of concern to the international community such as war and genocide, has yet to issue an official statement on the specific charges against Duterte.
But based on a copy of the arrest warrant obtained from Philippines-based National Union of People’s Lawyers (NUPL), the ICC has cited “reasonable grounds” in issuing an arrest warrant for Duterte for the crimes against humanity he allegedly committed during his administration’s bloody war against drugs.
ICC presiding judge Iulia Antoanella Motoc issued the order on 7 March, but was certified by ICC Registrar Osvaldo Zavala Giler on 10 March.
In 2018, the Netherlands-based court first launched a preliminary investigation into the allegations while he was still in power. A year later, the Philippines withdrew from the court as Duterte’s administration condemned the enquiry as a “violation of due process”, resulting in the probe’s suspension.
The ICC granted its prosecutor’s request in 2021 to reopen the investigation into the killings, after the Supreme Court stated that the Philippines still has an obligation to cooperate in the proceedings.
Since the Philippines is no longer part of the ICC, the investigation will only cover the period when the treaty was in force in the country, between November 2011 and March 2019.
Even before he became president, Duterte was linked to a vigilante group based in the sothern city of Davao where he was mayor. Known as the Davao Death Squad, the group was estimated to have killed at least a thousand people since the 1990s, mostly targeting suspected drug dealers, petty criminals, and street children.
What is the ICC’s mandate?
With 125 member countries, the ICC has the authority under the Rome Statute to investigate and prosecute crimes committed by their nationals or by anyone on their territory. The ICC is a court of last resort, which means that it will only step in if national authorities are unwilling or unable to investigate and prosecute crimes within the ICC’s mandate.
Once Duterte appears before the court, the next step is pre-trial proceedings known as “confirmation of charges.” During such proceedings, judges determine whether the available evidence establishes “substantial grounds” to believe that the person committed each of the crimes charged in the indictment. If a charge or charges are confirmed, a trial date is set, according to the ICC website.
During the trial, the prosecution must prove before three judges that Duterte is guilty beyond reasonable doubt. Judges consider all evidence, then issue a verdict and, when there is a verdict of guilt, issue a sentence. The judges can sentence a person to up to 30 years of imprisonment, and under exceptional circumstances, a life sentence.
Verdicts are subject to appeal by the defence and by the prosecutor. Judges can also order reparations for the victims. If there is not enough evidence, the case is closed and the accused is released. Acquittals are subject to appeal by the defence and by the prosecutor.
Duterte is the first former Asian leader to be served an arrest warrant over charges filed at the ICC.
Previous warrants include one issued for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in November for what was called “crimes against humanity and war crimes” in Israel’s military operation against Hamas in the Gaza Strip.
The ICC has held trials for Charles Taylor, the former Liberian president, who was apprehended in 2012 to face charges at the UN-backed Special Court for Sierra Leone after three years of safe haven in Nigeria. Similarly, after many years of evading justice, high-level suspects were arrested and faced trial by the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia.
How deadly was Duterte’s war on drugs?
While the administration claimed the initiative was aimed at arresting suspected drug dealers and users, it had ballooned into a wave of extrajudicial executions in impoverished urban areas, some of which appear to not have been meaningfully investigated, let alone prosecuted.
More than 6,000 drug suspects were killed in the drug war, according to police records. But international watchdog Global Witness reported a death toll that has reached an estimated 20,000 Filipinos executed when Duterte governed the Southeast Asian nation.
The mothers of war on drugs victims hold up photos of their slain children during a mass at the People’s Center building in the House of Representatives. Image: Rise for Life and for Rights
A report published by the United Nations in 2020 alleges that tens of thousands of people were killed, including at least 73 children, the youngest being five months old.
The ICC is investigating these allegations, some made by victims of the systematic violence meted out by police, who say they killed suspects only in self-defence.
How has the war on drugs impacted human rights defenders?
Duterte’s war on drugs “normalised” extrajudicial killings of land and environmental defenders, said Rachel Cox, senior Asia campaigner at Global Witness, in a statement after the former president’s arrest.
“It has empowered political and economic elites to silence dissent with violence,” said Cox. “We call on the [administration of President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr] to ensure that justice extends beyond Duterte’s arrest, by dismantling the policies that continue to put defenders at risk,” she underscored, highlighting a number of harmful Duterte-era measures that continue to endanger defenders.
For 13 consecutive years since 2012, the Philippines has been named Asia’s deadliest country for environmental defenders by Global Witness.
In the last decade, the number of killings annually peaked under the regime of the now embattled strongman. In 2020, the Philippines was the third most dangerous country in the world for people protecting land and the environment with 29 documented killings – only Colombia and Mexico recorded more. According to Global Witness, over half of the lethal attacks were directly linked to defenders’ opposition to mining, logging and dam projects.
In the wake of Duterte lifting a nine-year moratorium on new mining projects in 2021, another 11 Filipino environmental activists were killed. At least 195 land defender killings were documented in the span of his 2016 to 2022 term.
The lingering impacts on society and activism – will Duterte’s arrest mean a safer space for environmental and human rights defenders?
Besides the victims of Duterte’s war on drugs, environmental and human rights defenders were killed and assaulted during Duterte’s term. Despite the arrest, Jaybee Garganera, national coordinator of anti-mining coalition Alyansa Tigil Mina, said it is unclear if it is now less dangerous for environmental defenders in the country.
“We don’t expect significant improvement in the civic space for environmental defenders or a reduction in risks because most of these threats are coming from mining and other extractive corporations that have policy support from the existing Marcos administration,” Garganera told Eco-Business.
Since taking office three years ago, Philippine president Ferdinand Marcos, Jr has been vocal about mining for transition minerals like nickel and copper as key to economic recovery after the Covid-19 pandemic.
This policy has been met with resistance from environmental groups, who said it disregards the negative impacts of extractives. Nickel mining companies have faced back-to-back protests from communities who are concerned about the effects of mining on local ecosystems.
Global Witness has flagged the need to revisit regulations such as the Anti-Terrorism Act of 2020, which has been used to criminalise activism and quell opposition. The act was institutionalised during the Duterte regime. After a 2024 visit to the country, a UN Special Rapporteur said the act contains an overly broad and vague definition of terrorism, which leaves it open to abuse.
Another problematic Duterte-era policy is the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC), which has been criticised for targeting civilians, activists and Indigenous communities under the guise of counterinsurgency. Marcos has allowed the NTF-ELCAC to remain in operation with a budget of P7.8 billion (US$136 million) in 2025, despite the body’s reputation for unjust red-tagging, harassment and other human rights violations.
Gregorio Bueta, professor of natural resources and environmental law and international environment and climate change law at the Ateneo School of Law, said it will take time for human rights advocacy to improve in the Philippines.
“It [Dutere’s arrest] may not directly or immediately lead to a safer space for advocacy but it sends a signal to would-be violators that justice will be served and will prevail under the rule of law. And the public can have a bit more trust and confidence in our legal and justice institutions to do what is right when called for,” said Bueta.
