FACT CHECK: ICC ruling on Duterte waiver misrepresented as decision on his release

Claim: The International Criminal Court (ICC) has issued a ruling for the release of detained former president Rodrigo Duterte.

Rating: FALSE 

Why we fact-checked this: The post has already received 15,000 reactions, 5,900 comments, and 510 shares as of writing. It was posted on February 21, after the ICC issued a decision allowing Duterte to skip his confirmation of charges set to start on February 23. 

The post shows a photo of Duterte with the text, “ICC umatras na! PRRD pinayagan na! Buong mundo nabigla!”

(ICC has withdrawn! [President Rodrigo Roa Duterte] has been allowed! The whole world is shocked!)

It also includes an image of ICC President Tomoko Akane, along with Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., Vice President Sara Duterte,  Ombudsman Jesus Crispin Remulla, Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro, and Interior Secretary Jonvic Remulla. 

Text seen at the lower part of the composite photo reads, “Mga judges bumigay na! Uuwi na si PRRD?”

(The judges have given up! Will PRRD go home?)

The facts: The ICC has not issued any order for Duterte’s release. The decision issued by the ICC Pre-Trial Chamber I, dated February 20, 2026, granted the former president’s request to skip his confirmation of charges hearing, not his release from detention. 

Duterte’s pre-trial hearings are scheduled on February 23, 24, 26, and 27. While the ICC allowed his absence from the proceedings, the former president is still currently detained at the ICC detention facility in The Hague, Netherlands. 

Waiver request: In a letter submitted to the ICC pre-trial chamber on February 18, Duterte requested to waive his right to attend his confirmation of charges hearing, saying he is “old, tired, and frail” and that he does not recognize the chamber’s jurisdiction. (READ: HIGHLIGHTS: Day 1 of Duterte pre-trial)

ICC prosecutors opposed Duterte’s plea to waive his right to face the charges against him, saying that there was no reasonable cause for the former president not to appear in person at the court. 

In a decision issued on February 20, the ICC Pre-Trial Chamber I allowed Duterte to skip the hearing, but clarified that this was not due to reasons of health but because of his signed waiver. 

The chamber cited Article 61(2)(a) of the Rome Statute, which states that the pre-trial chamber may hold a hearing in the absence of the person charged when the person has waived his or her right to be present. 

The confirmation of charges hearing was previously scheduled in September 2025, but was delayed after Duterte’s lawyers claimed that he had a “deteriorating cognitive condition” that made him unfit to participate in the proceedings. 

In a January 2026 decision, ICC judges declared Duterte fit for pre-trial following independent assessments by medical experts.

ICC arrest: Duterte was arrested in March 2025 and was sent to the ICC in The Hague, Netherlands, to face charges of crimes against humanity over his administration’s war on drugs. 

The campaign reportedly killed over 30,000 individuals, including civilians and children, according to human rights watchdogs. 

Previous fact checks: Rappler has previously debunked similar false claims about Duterte’s ICC case: 

• FACT CHECK: No ICC ruling allowing Duterte to return to PH wearing location tracker 
• FACT CHECK: No proof of Duterte in ‘critical’ condition 
• FACT CHECK: Duterte did not leave ICC detention for one hour; photo is AI-generated 
• FACT CHECK: Duterte’s ICC case not dismissed; claim of insufficient evidence is false 
• FACT CHECK: ICC prosecution has evidence related to Duterte drug war case 

– Angelee Kaye Abelinde/Rappler.com 

Angelee Kaye Abelinde is a student journalist based in Naga City, and an alumna of Rappler’s Aries Rufo Journalism Fellowship 2024. 

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