Duterte: I Want to Die in My Country

Now, in the twilight of his years, former President Rodrigo Duterte is yearning for freedom from the confines of the International Criminal Court (ICC).

“I want to die in my country,” Duterte told Vice President Sara Duterte, who visited him in The Hague, Netherlands, over the weekend.

As age weighs heavily on him, the elder Duterte declared that he longs to return to his homeland, the Philippines, as soon as fate allows it to happen.

In an interview outside the Scheveningen Prison in The Hague, following an hour-long phone conversation with her father, the Vice President said that despite being in stable condition, her father’s spirit is burdened by his singular desire to come home.

“I am an old man; I can die anytime, but I want to die in my country,” Sara, her voice tinged with emotion, quoted her father as saying.

Understanding the former president’s wishes, she assured the public that their legal team is working on Duterte’s case and visiting him regularly.

Nicholas Kaufman, legal counsel for Duterte, had previously declared that they would file a petition with the ICC for his client’s temporary release.

Asked about the possibility of the court approving such a petition but relocating him to a different ICC member country instead of the Philippines, Sara expressed hope that their defense team would be able to use the most effective legal strategy.