Standing before the International Criminal Court on Wednesday, July 29, Vice President Sara Duterte turned her anger toward two figures she blames for her father’s imprisonment, accusing President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and former Senator Antonio Trillanes IV of betraying the country.
The vice president made the charge during a demonstration by supporters of former President Rodrigo Duterte, who has been held in ICC custody since March 2025 while facing crimes against humanity charges connected to the anti-drug campaign he waged as president.
“[The ICC] found Marcos, Trillanes, and money in the Philippine case. Maleta ang pinag-uusapan dito. Where is the justice in all this?” she told the crowd, casting the proceedings against her father as driven by domestic political rivals rather than the pursuit of accountability.
The gathering, held under the “Free Duterte Now” banner, unfolded outside the detention complex at Scheveningen where the elder Duterte is being kept. Sara Duterte had traveled to the Netherlands to visit him and, in interviews ahead of the protest, described the event as a way for Filipinos to voice their outrage over what his backers view as an unjust prosecution.
Trillanes has been among the most vocal accusers in the cases against the Duterte family. GMA News Online has reported that the former senator alleged the vice president and her immediate relatives took P181 million from a suspected drug figure — one of several claims that have fueled the political conflict between the Duterte and Marcos camps.
Her appearance at the rally came the same week her impeachment trial resumed in Manila. Senator-judges reconvened on July 29 for the tenth day of proceedings, with House prosecutors opening their case on Article I, which centers on the alleged misuse of P612.5 million in confidential funds. Two former Land Bank branch managers were called to describe withdrawals made by disbursing officers tied to her office.
The vice president has kept her distance from events at home while abroad. She has said she did not watch Marcos’ State of the Nation Address and has no intention of reading it, dismissing the speech as a waste of Filipinos’ time.
She has also pushed back on expectations circulating among supporters about her father’s legal situation. The Manila Times reported that she denied ever telling a London audience the former president would walk free the following week, saying no such statement appears in the transcript of her remarks.
Even as she encouraged the Hague demonstration, Sara Duterte has acknowledged privately warning her father that the protests may do little for him. By her account, he questioned the point of continued rallies before ultimately leaving the matter to those who wanted to gather in his name.
