FACT-CHECK: ICC judge did not say Duterte ‘should not be imprisoned’

admin 7:19 PM

Claim: International Criminal Court (ICC) Presiding Judge Joanna Korner said former president Rodrigo Duterte “should not be imprisoned.”

 

Rating: FALSE

 

A widely shared Facebook graphic falsely attributed a statement to International Criminal Court (ICC) Presiding Judge Joanna Korner saying that former president Rodrigo Duterte “should not be imprisoned.

Flagged content: The malicious post falsely claimed that Korner had said this because the Philippines was no longer an ICC member, which meant that the court lacked jurisdiction over Duterte’s case involving crimes against humanity.

  • The Facebook post, shared by vlogger Nohman Mamocarao Hadji Noor on July 28, had more than 4,300 likes, 313 comments, and 215 reactions as of posting time. 
  • The caption read: “Mga idol, GoOD news, my matino pala sa ICC, sana nga makauwi kana. Ikaw ang presidente namin tatay digong ng pilipinas.” (Hey, idols, good news, there’s a straight shooter in the ICC. I hope you come home, our president, Father Digong of the Philippines.)

Our debunk: The ICC’s Public Affairs Unit confirmed that the quote circulating on social media is entirely false and was never made by Presiding Judge Joanna Korner.

  • “This statement is incorrect and is not attributable to Judge Korner,” the ICC said in an email to PressOne.PH.
  • The ICC said all official statements, court decisions, filings, and hearing transcripts are publicly available. None contained the quote attributed to Korner.

Duterte still in ICC custody: The court’s Trial Chamber III had ruled that Duterte would remain in detention pending trial, contrary to the claim that holding him was unlawful.

  • The ICC stressed its jurisdiction over Duterte’s case, which stemmed from his bloody war on drugs.
  • Although the Philippines withdrew from the Rome Statute in 2019, the court retained jurisdiction over crimes committed while the Philippines was still a state party—from Nov. 1, 2011 to March 16, 2019.
  • Moreover, the ICC Appeals Chamber had affirmed that the court could exercise jurisdiction over the Duterte case for alleged crimes committed during that period.

Beware of viral posts: The fabricated quote misrepresents the position of the judge presiding over one of the ICC’s highest-profile cases and falsely suggests that the court has abandoned its own legal rulings.

  • The ICC stressed that the authoritative sources for the case are its official news releases, judicial filings, court records, and hearing transcripts—not viral social media graphics. Felipe F. Salvosa II


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