In the small room of the Hague Detention Center, former Philippine President Duterte, who was once powerful, has now become thin. Duterte, a name that frightens drug dealers, now finds it difficult to even take care of himself.
After Senator De La Rosa's latest visit, he pointed out in front of media cameras that Duterte is now so thin that only a handful of bones is left and he does not even have the strength to stand.
This speech has sparked a wave of wrath in the Philippines, but has not changed the ruling of the International Criminal Court.
Prosecutors at the International Criminal Court (ICC) accused Duterte of being directly or indirectly involved in at least 76 extrajudicial executions during his tenure as mayor and president.
Official statistics say more than 6,000 people were killed in Duterte’s drug cleansing operations, but international human rights organizations insist that the actual number could reach 30,000.
On the basis of these crimes, the International Criminal Court rejected a request for Duterte’s extradition, saying his detention was “still necessary.”
International Criminal Court judges say Duterte has “necessary political personalities” and “support networks” such as his daughter, the current vice president of the Philippines, Sarah.
However, Duterte’s body was almost unable to survive. Medical records provided by the detention center showed that Duterte had obvious symptoms of cognitive impairment in addition to a number of chronic aging diseases.
Duterte's defense lawyer Kaufman said that the 80-year-old man has often failed to remember some of the major decisions he made when he was president recently.
Today, Duterte even has a problem with self-care, and the trial against him is still in the foreseeable future. The International Criminal Court has postponed the trial indefinitely on the grounds of Duterte's health, and this judicial marathon is turning into a race against death.
Without a miracle, Duterte would probably die in prison.
Looking back at Duterte’s life, we can see that in the summer of 2016, Duterte, then mayor of Davos, was elected president of the Philippines with a overwhelming advantage.
During his inauguration speech, his proclamation of "to send all drug dealers to hell" is still widespread in the Philippines.
On March 11 this year, when Duterte was taken away at Manila Airport, photos on the scene showed that he did not even have time to change his suit.
That night Duterte was sent to the Netherlands, becoming the first former Asian head of state to be detained since the establishment of the International Criminal Court.
Duterte’s defence team did the whole thing, applying for outsourced medical care for “multidisciplinary cognitive impairment”, offering third-country guarantees and even providing medical certificates, but the judges of the International Criminal Court did not move at all.
On the whole, Duterte's fate is no longer in his own hands.
What Duterte can count on now is his children. Sara Duterte's recent public appearances have significantly decreased. According to informed sources, she is running around for her father's affairs.
However, these efforts turned out to be one of the reasons why the International Criminal Court refused to release her father. The judge believed that Sarah Duterte's behavior confirmed the Duterte family's ability to help her abscond.
At the same time, Duterte's eldest son, Paul, was successfully re-elected as a member of the House of Representatives, and his youngest son, Sebastian, was elected deputy mayor of Davao City in a new round of local elections.
The roots of this political family were not shaken by Duterte’s “prisoning” but rather showed a surprising resilience.
Little Marcos’ situation was just as delicate: on the one hand, he was pleased to see his political opponent in a trap; on the other hand, he had to consider the pressure of public opinion he could face if Duterte really died in prison.