‘He might die in prison’: VP Sara hopes ICC expedites father’s trial

MANILA, Philippines — Vice President Sara Duterte urged the International Criminal Court (ICC) to expedite the ongoing trial involving her father, former President Rodrigo Duterte, in the Philippines.

The vice president made the remark while noting that her father can no longer endure several more years in detention.

READ: Sara Duterte dismisses rumors of father’s ICC release

“We can only request and plead with them to speed up the trial because he is already 81 years old and he cannot afford to stay in detention for three, four, five years more,” said Sara in an interview at The Hague, Netherlands.

The vice president also said she hopes the chief prosecutor of the trial will be “for the accused,” citing a presumption of innocence.

“Well, we hope that they will always be for the accused since there is a presumption of innocence always for an accused and they will speed up the trial. But we really do not know with the ICC,” she said.

Rodrigo Duterte might die in ICC prison

Asked what her biggest concern was over her father’s prolonged detention, Sara Duterte said she feared he might die in custody.

However, she noted that she has already talked about this possibility with the former president, stating that he already gave her “instructions” should he die while in prison.

“There is always the possibility that he will pass inside the prison. And that is something that I already discussed with [former] President Duterte,” said Sara.

“That is why he gave his instructions in case he dies in prison. But of course, as a Filipino, as a daughter, we want him to die on Philippine soil,” she added.

Sara did not specify what these instructions were, whether it was related to politics or simply about their family.

Rodrigo Duterte is facing three counts of crimes against humanity due to his administration’s bloody war against drugs, which killed at least 6,000 people based on government records and over 30,000 based on human rights records, including children as young as 3 years old.

His trial over the allegations is set to begin on Nov. 30. /das

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