Duterte to daughter Sara: Cremate me in The Hague if I die here

Former Philippine president Rodrigo Duterte. ARCHIVE

Former Philippine president Rodrigo Duterte has reportedly told his daughter, Vice President Sara Duterte, that he wants to be cremated in The Hague if he dies while detained by the International Criminal Court (ICC). Sara Duterte revealed the request after visiting her father at the ICC detention facility. “He said that if he dies here in the Netherlands, he doesn’t want his body to be brought back to the Philippines. He just wants to be cremated here, and only his ashes should be brought home,” she said in an interview. The Vice President said she was “not pro-cremation” but joked that her father warned he might haunt her if she refuses. “That’s probably natural for someone who’s 80 years old, right? To think that way,” she added, saying she was relieved to know his final wishes. The elder Duterte is detained in The Hague pending trial for crimes against humanity linked to his controversial war on drugs, which human rights groups say killed thousands of people. On Thursday (July 10), Senator Alan Peter Cayetano filed a resolution proposing that former president Rodrigo Duterte be granted house arrest at the Philippine embassy in The Hague while awaiting trial. In his resolution, Cayetano urged the Philippine government to seek an interim release for Duterte, citing the former leader’s age, health, and prolonged isolation. Cayetano argued that the ex-president deserves to be presumed innocent until proven guilty. “Denying Duterte time with family is an injustice,” Cayetano said, appealing for compassion so that the 80-year-old can spend his remaining years with loved ones. CAM/Expat Media