Who are the judges in Rodrigo Duterte’s ICC trial?

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These ICC judges handled the Central African Republic and Mali cases, and even the Palestine situation

Former president Rodrigo Duterte, the once strongman leader of the Philippines, will go to trial at the International Criminal Court (ICC) for his crimes against humanity case that stemmed from killings associated with his brutal war on drugs and alleged Davao Death Squad.

This comes after the all-women ICC pre-trial chamber confirmed all the charges against Duterte on April 23, for three counts of crimes against humanity of murder, covering 49 incidents of killings and 78 victims.

In a decision dated April 24, the ICC Presidency constituted the Trial Chamber III and appointed the following judges to handle Duterte’s case:

• Judge Joanna Korner
• Judge Keebong Paek
• Judge Nicolas Guillou

Here’s a quick backgrounder on the three, based on their ICC profile.

Judge Joanna Korner

Photo by International Criminal Court

• Country: United Kingdom
• Term: March 11, 2021 to March 10, 2030
• Assignment: Trial Division
• Current chamber: Trial Chamber I, V, and III
• Cases handled: The Prosecutor v. Alfred Yekatom and Patrice-Edouard Ngaïssona (Central African Republic)
  • The Prosecutor v. Ali Muhammad Ali Abd-Al-Rahman (“Ali Kushayb”) (Sudan)
• Biography: She has been an expert on criminal law for 45 years now, having served as a judge and barrister.
  • Judge Korner served as a judge of the Crown Court of England and Wales, handling fraud and murder cases. She also served as Queen Counsel from 1993, prosecuting and defending cases of courts in England and Wales.
  • For a total of eight years (1999 to 2004), (2009 to 2012) as a senior ICC prosecutor at the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia.
  • She also served as a senior legal adviser to the chief prosecutor of Bosnia and Herzegovina, during the establishment of a War Crimes Section in the country’s State Prosecutor’s Office, from 2004 to 2005.
  • The judge obtained his law degree from the Inns of Court School of Law. 
  • She was also named a Companion of the Order of Saint Michael and Saint George for services to international law. The said order “recognizes service in a foreign country, or in relation to foreign and Commonwealth affairs.”

Keebong Paek

Photo by International Criminal Court

• Country: South Korea
• Term: March 11, 2024 to March 10, 2033
• Assignment: Trial Division
• Current chamber: Trial Chamber III, IV, V, VI, and X
• Cases handled: The Prosecutor v. Abdallah Banda Abakaer Nourain (Sudan)
  • The Prosecutor v. Alfred Yekatom and Patrice-Edouard Ngaïssona (Central African Republic)
  • The Prosecutor v. Mahamat Said Abdel Kani (Central African Republic)
  • The Prosecutor v. Al Hassan Ag Abdoul Aziz Ag Mohamed Ag Mahmoud (Mali)
• Biography: Judge Paek served as a prosecutor in Korea. He later served as deputy director and then director at his country’s Ministry of Justice.
  • Under the ministry, he handled ICC-related matters, took part in the drafting of the implementing bill for Korea’s Rome Statute ratification, and represented his country at the ICC Preparatory Commission sessions.
  • He also worked at the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, and helped member states in implementing the UN Convention against Transnational Organized Crime to focus on law enforcement capacities.
  • After serving as a prosecutor for 22 years, or since 1992, he entered the private practice in 2014. He handled cases on extradition, mutual legal assistance, and even cross-border asset recovery.
  • Judge Paek earned his law degree from the Seoul National University. He holds a master’s degree in law from Columbia Law School, and PhD from the Hanyang University.
  • According to the ICC, he has authored several books and articles on international criminal law, and his doctoral dissertation focused on the law of evidence in ICC proceedings.

Judge Nicolas Guillou

Photo by International Criminal Court

• Country: France
• Term: March 11, 2024 to March 10, 2033
• Assignment: Trial Division
• Current chamber: Trial Chamber II, III, and IV, and Pre-Trial Chamber I
• Cases handled: Situation in the State of Palestine
  • The Prosecutor v. Germain Katanga (Democratic Republic of the Congo)
  • The Prosecutor v. Thomas Lubanga Dyilo (Democratic Republic of the Congo)
  • The Prosecutor v. Bosco Ntaganda (Democratic Republic of the Congo)
  • The Prosecutor v. Ahmad Al Faqi Al Mahdi (Mali)
  • The Prosecutor v. Dominic Ongwen (Uganda)
  • The Prosecutor v. Abdallah Banda Abakaer Nourain (Sudan)
  • The Prosecutor v. Ali Muhammad Ali Abd-Al-Rahman (“Ali Kushayb”) (Sudan)
• Biography: Judge Guillou started his judicial career as an investigative judge.
  • He served as a pre-trial judge for four years at the Kosovo Specialist Chambers.
  • He also worked as a chef de cabinet to the president of the Special Tribunal for Lebanon from 2015 to 2019, and as a liaison prosecutor at the US Department of Justice from 2012 to 2015.
  • At the French Ministry for Justice between 2006 and 2012, Judge Guillou worked as deputy head of the commercial law section, adviser to the Minister on Criminal Affairs, and as diplomatic adviser to the Minister.
  • He graduated from the French National School for the Judiciary, where he also teaches international justice. He holds a master’s degree in International and European Criminal Law from the Sorbonne University. – Rappler.com