Arrest of Duterte co-perpetrators sought

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April 26, 2026 | 12:00am

MANILA, Philippines — With charges against former president Rodrigo Duterte confirmed and the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court (ICC) upheld, human rights groups are now pushing for the arrest of other co-perpetrators named in the crimes against humanity case before the tribunal.

“Accountability must not stop with one individual,” the Philippine Coalition for the International Criminal Court (PCICC) said, following the subsequent decisions of the ICC Appeals Chamber and the Pre-Trial Chamber I this week.

“We call for the prompt issuance of arrest warrants against the alleged co-perpetrators identified in the proceedings,” it added.

According to the group, which advocates the Philippines’ continued involvement with the ICC, justice demands that all of those who participated in the planning, ordering and execution of the alleged crimes be brought within the reach of the law.

Ahead of Duterte’s confirmation hearings in February, the ICC Office of the Prosecutor released a lesser redacted version of the document containing charges against the former president.

Aside from Duterte, at least eight high-ranking officials were tagged as “co-perpetrators” of the alleged crimes.

These included Senators Ronald dela Rosa and Bong Go, former police chiefs Oscar Albayalde, Camilo Cascolan (deceased) and Vicente Danao, former National Bureau of Investigation director Dante Gierran, former Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency chief Isidro Lapeña and former justice secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II.

Their alleged involvement was again detailed in the pre-trial chamber’s decision released on Thursday.

Except for Duterte, who is currently detained at the ICC Detention Center in The Hague, no formal charges have been filed against the other officials, at least based on documents available to the public.

The ICC has not confirmed earlier reports that an arrest warrant has been issued against Dela Rosa, although it has been the practice of the court to release information on charges only after the accused is in custody.

Dela Rosa has not reported to the Senate since November last year, when rumors of the arrest warrant against him circulated.

In a separate statement, the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) and the Philippine Alliance of Human Rights Advocates (PAHRA) stressed the need for continued investigation into the full range of crimes allegedly committed by senior figures in the Duterte administration, including by the eight named co-perpetrators in the ICC case.

They also urged “Philippine authorities to pursue meaningful domestic accountability for other perpetrators, so that the broader pattern of abuses is addressed and more victims can access justice and reparations.”