By Joyce Ann Rocamora | Philippine News Agency
The International Criminal Court (ICC) on Tuesday named the judges designated to form the Trial Chamber III that will handle the crimes against humanity cases of former President Rodrigo Duterte.
French Judge Nicolas Guillou is currently handling six cases and presiding over the situation in the State of Palestine; British Judge Joanna Korner previously presided over the Trial Chamber I that handed the sentence against Ali Kushayb for 27 counts of crime against humanity in Darfur, Sudan; and Korean Judge Keebong Paek, who handled the case of Malian extremist Al Hassan Ag Abdoul Aziz Ag Mohamed Ag Mahmoud, who was convicted for war crimes and crime against humanity in Timbuktu, Mali.
“The Judges of the ICC are persons of high moral character, impartiality and integrity who possess the qualifications required in their respective States for appointment to the highest judicial offices,” the ICC said of the three judges.
All have extensive experience relevant to the Court’s judicial activity. They are elected by the Assembly of States Parties on the basis of their established competence in criminal law and procedure and in relevant areas of international law such as international humanitarian law and human rights law.”.
After the formation of Trial Chamber III, the ICC said the designated judges will hold status conferences, confer with the parties and participants in order to set the date of the trial.
The Pre-Trial Chamber I last week committed Duterte to a full trial after confirming all charges brought by the ICC prosecutor.
In its decision dated April 23, the Pre-Trial Chamber ruled that there are “substantial grounds to believe” that former Pres. Duterte was “criminally responsible” for the three counts of crimes against humanity against him, adding that these were committed as part of a “widespread and systematic attack against a civilian population” in the Philippines between Nov. 1, 2011 to March 16, 2019, in the context of the “war on drugs” campaign. (PNA)
