FACT CHECK: ICC president’s statement on court’s jurisdiction taken out of context

Claim: Judge Tomoko Akane, president of the International Criminal Court (ICC), stated that the ICC has no jurisdiction over non-state parties.

Rating: MISSING CONTEXT

Why we fact-checked this: A reel posted on Facebook has garnered 4.2 million views, with more than 27,000 reactions and 24,000 shares as of writing. Text superimposed on the reel reads: “ICC President, nagsalita na (The ICC President has spoken).”

In the reel, she says: “We don’t have jurisdiction. Same thing I can tell you, for example, if crimes occur on the soil of non-state parties by non-state persons, we don’t have jurisdiction — whatever the crime is, and this UN Security Council refer the situation to us. So we have the limitation under the Rome Statute, what kind of crimes and what kind of people, and the jurisdiction on the territory.” 

The video has been reshared multiple times by supporters of former president Rodrigo Duterte, who was arrested over crimes against humanity through a warrant issued by the ICC. His supporters use the video to justify the former president’s release, claiming that the ICC president herself said the tribunal has no authority over Duterte’s case because the Philippines is no longer a member of the ICC.

The facts: The video reel is spliced. It also omits crucial context from Akane’s statements during a March 19 event, where she addressed the Human Rights Subcommittee and the Legal Affairs Committee of the European Parliament to discuss the impact of the ICC’s recent decisions and its efforts to combat impunity in cases of war crimes and crimes against humanity.

The specific statement used in the misleading Facebook reel appears at the 11:31:35 timestamp but is only a fragment of her full response to questions directed at her. In the full video, Akane was responding to a question about the court’s jurisdiction over ecocide or environmental crimes. She said that as ecocide is not included in the list of crimes under the Rome Statute, the treaty that created the ICC, the tribunal is limited in its jurisdiction. She then went on to say that this also applies if “crimes occur on the soil of non-state parties by non-state parties or persons.” She does not mention Duterte’s case specifically. 

Furthermore, the opening clip of the Facebook reel where Akane says, “We don’t have jurisdiction,” has been selectively spliced and edited to create the misleading impression that the ICC lacks jurisdiction over Duterte’s case.

ICC jurisdiction: Contrary to the claims, the ICC retains jurisdiction over the drug war cases. The Philippines ratified the Rome Statute in 2011, placing it under the jurisdiction of the ICC until its withdrawal in 2019. However, while the Philippines is no longer a member of the international tribunal, the court still has jurisdiction as the alleged drug war crimes were committed before the country’s withdrawal. (READ: EXPLAINER: What you need to know about ICC’s jurisdiction over Duterte)

Article 127 (2) of the Rome Statute states that “[a] State shall not be discharged, by reason of its withdrawal, from the obligations arising from this Statute while it was a Party to the Statute,.

Duterte is currently detained at the Scheveningen Prison in The Hague and will appear before the ICC on September 23, 2025, for a confirmation of charges hearing. (READ: What to expect in the 6 months before Duterte’s ICC pre-trial)

Rappler has fact-checked multiple claims on the ICC and Duterte’s case:

• FACT CHECK: US gov’t sanctions on ICC not a response to Duterte arrest
• FACT CHECK: ICC prosecutor did not say Duterte is innocent
• FACT CHECK: Contrary to claims, ICC retains jurisdiction over PH drug war cases
• FACT CHECK: No order from ICC president to release Duterte ahead of his birthday
• FACT CHECK: Chinese warplane did not escort plane carrying Duterte to ICC

 – Cyril Bocar/Rappler.com 

Efren Cyril Bocar is a student journalist from Llorente, Eastern Samar, enrolled in English Language Studies at the Visayas State University. A managing editor of Amaranth, Cyril is a graduate of the Aries Rufo Journalism Fellowship of Rappler for 2024. 

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