Several faces are set to take centerstage in the International Criminal Court’s courtroom 1 as the tribunal opens the confirmation of charges hearing of former Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte — the first Asian to be hurled before the chamber — on February 23.
Here’s a look at the judges, lawyers and other possible characters who may appear during the 4-day proceedings, which will determine if there is sufficient evidence to put the Philippines’ 16th President to trial over charges of crimes against humanity.
RODRIGO ROA DUTERTE
The Accused
Former President Rodrigo Duterte was deemed as fit to appear before the Pre-Trial Chamber I for his confirmation of charges hearing.
But days before the start of the proceedings, the 80-year old Filipino waived his right to appear before the panel, citing a supposed lack of jurisdiction and his “frail” health.
The Rome Statue — which governs the processes of the ICC — requires the presence of the accused in his or her confirmation hearing, but it also allows the accused to waive this right “upon the request of the Prosecutor or on its own motion” if the individual in question has “waived his or her right to be present” or “cannot be found.”
DEFENSE PANEL
NICHOLAS KAUFMAN
Lead Defense Counsel
British-Israeli lawyer Nicholas Kaufman is a veteran defense counsel with over 3 decades of experience in the ICC and other international tribunals.
In 2010, he was part of the defense team who convinced the ICC’s Pre-Trial Chamber I that there were insufficient evidence against Rwandan rebel leader Callixte Mbarushimana, who was then facing 5 counts of crimes against humanity and 8 counts of war crimes.
Kaufman has also represented former Congo Vice President Jean Pierre Bemba and former Central African Republic (CAR) minister Maxime Mokom, who were also charged with crimes against humanity before the ICC.
DOV JACOBS
Associate Defense Counsel
French lawyer Dov Jacobs is an associate counsel in Duterte’s defense team.
He is an Assistant Professor of Public International Law at Leiden University in the Netherlands, and has worked for the acquittal of former Cote d’Ivoire President Laurent Gbagbo, who was also facing crimes against humanity charges before the ICC.
PROSECUTION PANEL
MANDIAYE NIANG
Prosecutor
ICC Deputy Prosecutor Mame Mandiaye Niang has been leading the prosecution panel against Duterte after the chamber ruled in favor of Kaufman’s petition to remove Chief Prosecutor Karim Khan from the proceedings over a supposed conflict of interest issue.
The Senegalese lawyer served as a judge in several international tribunals, and has also worked as a regional representative of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime in South Africa.
EDWARD JEREMY
Trial Lawyer
Edward Jeremy is a seasoned trial lawyer in the ICC. One of his notable cases is that of Sudanese militia leader Ali Muhammad Ali Abd-Al-Rahman, who was charged with 31 counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity.
After about half a decade of hearings, Jeremy’s panel was able to convince the ICC that Abd Al-Rahman was guilty of 27 counts of crimes against humanity in Darfur, Sudan. The accused was sentenced to 20 years of imprisonment.
ROBYNNE CROFT
Trial Lawyer
Robynne Croft is an international humanitarial law expert who has been working at the ICC’s Office of the Prosecutor.
Croft — who has an Advance Masters in Public International Law specializing in International Criminal Law — has also worked in the United Nations, particularly in the agency’s Mechanis for International Criminal Tribunals (UN-MICT) and its Assistance to the Khmer Rouge Trials (UNAKRT).
CHANTAL DANIELS
International Cooperation Advisor
GRACE GOH
Trial Manager
COUNSEL FOR VICTIMS
JOEL BUTUYAN
Chairperson, Center Law Philippines
Human rights lawyer Joel Butuyan is the president and co-founder of Center for International Law (CenterLaw), a non-governmental organization that is involved in the litigation of human rights and public interest cases.
Butuyan started his own law firm shortly after he graduated from the University of the Philippines College of Law in 1991. The firm eventually became the Butuyan and Rayel Law Offices with lawyers Roger Rayel and Gilbert Andres as senior partners.
GILBERT ANDRES
Executive Director, Center Law Philippines
Human rights lawyer Gilbert Andres sits as the Executive Director of CenterLaw Philippines, and an accredited legal counsel at the ICC.
Andres was one of the private prosecutors in the Maguindanao Massacre case, and has also represented Filipino fishermen in the West Philippine Sea.
He is a senior partner at the Butuyan and Rayel Law Offices, and also teaches law at the Lyceum of the PHilippines and at the Adamson University College of Law.
NICOLENE ARCAINA
Case Manager
Nicolene Arcaina is a layer at CenterLaw, who worked as the lead defense counsel for Efren Morillo, one of the first known survivors of the War on Drugs, and also helped in strategic litigation cases defending “red-tagged” individuals during Duterte’s presidency.
The millennial Filipino lawyer is also the Executive Director of the Ateneo Human Rights Center (AHRC), which has been instrumental in the creation of human rights-focused clinics and psychosocial and legal support for over 400 individuals impacted by the War on Drugs.
PAOLINA MASSIDA
Principal Counsel, ICC Office of Public Counsel for Victims
Paolina Massida has been at the helm of the ICC’s Office of Public Counsel for Victims (OPCV) since it was created in 2005. The OPCV oversees nearly all cases and situations in the court, as the office is created for victims who could not afford to hire their own private legal counsels.
Massida has been training judges in human rights and international criminal law across the European Union, and was an international humanitarian law adviser for the Red Cross.
PRE-TRIAL CHAMBER I JUDGES
IULIA ANTOANELLA MOTOC
Presiding Judge
Iulia Antoanella Motoc is the presiding judge of the Pre-Trial Chamber I that is handling the crimes against humanity charges filed against Duterte.
Before she became a judge in the ICC, the Romanian international law expert was a judge at the European Court of Human Rights, a UN Special Rapporteur for the Democratic Republic of Congo, and a judge at the Constitutional Court of Romania.
Motoc, who also teaches International Law, has also occupied various posts in the UN Human Rights Committee, and has worked on studies on international law, human rights and transnational justice.
REINE ADELAIDE SOPHIE ALAPINI-GANSOU
Judge
Before joining the ICC as a judge, Reine Adelaide Sophie Alapini-Gansou headed the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights for 3 years and also worked as a special rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders in Africa for nearly a decade.
Admitted to the Benin Bar in 1986, Alapini-Gansou was a member of several UN inquiries on human rights, and was appointed as a judge at the Permanent Court of Arbitration in 2011.
MARIA DEL SOCORRO FLORES LIERA
Judge
Maria del Socorro Flores Liera was part of Mexico’s foreign service before she became a judge in the ICC. She served as Permanent Representative of Mexico to the United Nations and other international organizations based in Geneva from 2017 to 2021.
She has also worked as vice president of the Human Rights Council, and was closely involved in the process leading to the creation of the ICC in 1995, particularly in negotiations that led to the creation of the Rome Statute and the Elements of Crimes and Rules of Procedure and Evidence.
POSSIBLE WITNESSES
The ICC earlier allowed the Prosecutor to present “at least two witnesses” during Duterte’s supposed confirmation of charges hearing in September, Assistant to Counsel Kristina Conti.
The Prosecution has yet to say if they will still present those witnesses in the February hearing.
There are 4 kinds of witnesses in the ICC:
Victims, who experienced the crime themselves
Expert witnesses, who can give further context on the situation
Pattern witnesses, who can establish the series of events and prove that there is a systemic execution of the crime
Insider witnesses, who have direct knowledge on how the crimes were committed.
The Pre-Trial Chamber has redacted the names of possible witnesses in Duterte’s case. The Prosecution has also been mum if these witnesses will appear next week.
But it can be recalled that years before Duterte was hurled to the ICC, Arturo Lascañas and Edgar Matobato has already confessed to being former members of the so-called Davao Death Squad, the supposed group of vigilante killers under the Duterte’s command since he rose to power as Davao mayor in the 80s.
ARTURO LASCAÑAS
Arturo Lascañas said he was the one of the first few members of 300-member execution squad that was initially designed to kill lawless individuals to cleanse Duterte’s bailiwick and nearby areas.
Lascañas claimed that Duterte personally gave the orders to kill rapists, thieves, and eventually his personal nemeses in politics.
Lascañas has been in hiding soon after he gave the sworn testimony before the Philippine Senate in 2017.
EDGAR MATOBATO
Edgar Matobato was the first self-confessed member of the Davao Death Squad.
The Davao-born former hitman said he started to bolt away from the group in 2013 after they were asked to kill 3 girls, who in his eyes, were innocent.
He said he sought refuge with the Department of Justice and eventually with the Catholic Church after he was tortured for days in 2014.
Matobato fled the Philippines in January 2025 using a fake name and a fake passport with his wife. He is believed to be staying in Europe.