Honeylet Avanceña, longtime partner of former president Rodrigo Duterte, has been barred from visiting him at the International Criminal Court (ICC) detention center after reportedly discussing case details during a phone call. The restriction came after a July 19 call allegedly violated visitation protocols, prompting the ICC’s action.
Avanceña, in an interview on social media, denied the violation and voiced frustration over the defense team’s lack of transparency. She hinted at possible differences in legal strategy, saying, “Please do not deprive us of seeking other legal opinions,” in what appeared to be directed at Duterte’s lead counsel Nicholas Kaufman.
Kaufman, while declining to confirm specifics, described Avanceña as “emotionally distressed” and dismissed any rumors of internal conflict. “There are absolutely no internal disagreements… Harry Roque is an irrelevancy,” he said, adding that Vice President Sara Duterte, a lawyer herself, is satisfied with the legal strategy.
The situation is further complicated by Roque’s alleged interference. Kaufman reiterated that Duterte himself asked Roque to stop meddling in the ICC case. Roque, who faces human trafficking charges in the Philippines, has reportedly sought asylum in the Netherlands and tried to sue the Dutch government — a move Kaufman labeled a “crazy scheme.”
