MANILA — Former President Rodrigo Duterte has no plans to replace his current lawyers at the International Criminal Court (ICC), Vice President Sara Duterte said.

Speaking to supporters in The Hague, the vice president said she personally asked her father whether he wanted to change his legal team following concerns over their ability to handle upcoming ICC proceedings. Duterte replied that he did not wish to replace them but gave new instructions to the lawyers, she said.

“Tinanong ko si dating Pangulong Rodrigo Duterte. Sabi ko, exactly kung ano ‘yung tanong ninyo: gusto mo ba palitan at hindi ka pa satisfied? Sabi niya, hindi palitan. Pero meron siyang mga instructions na ibinigay sa legal team,” she said. She did not disclose the specific instructions given.

Duterte’s legal team, led by British-Israeli lawyer Nicholas Kaufman, has faced several setbacks. On January 26, the ICC ruled that Duterte is fit to stand trial, rejecting claims that cognitive decline made him incapable of following proceedings or instructing his lawyers. Independent medical experts had assessed him as able to exercise his rights.

The fitness challenge, filed in August 2025, argued that Duterte could not retain information long enough to participate in hearings, directly contradicting the fact that he issued instructions to his legal team.

Earlier, the ICC had also rejected Duterte’s challenges to the court’s jurisdiction, which his defense argued was nullified after the Philippines withdrew from the Rome Statute in March 2019. Judges ruled that the court retained jurisdiction because the preliminary examination began in February 2018, before the withdrawal took effect.

Duterte also failed to secure interim release in November 2025, as judges found he posed a flight risk and could intimidate witnesses if freed.

The former president faces three counts of crimes against humanity linked to at least 76 alleged murders during his war on drugs, which human rights groups estimate could have resulted in as many as 30,000 deaths.

The next step in the case is the confirmation of charges hearing on February 23, where the ICC Pre-trial Chamber I will decide whether there is sufficient evidence to proceed to trial. Duterte has been detained in The Hague since his arrest on March 11, 2025, and has appeared before the court only once via video conference.