Duterte, 79, appeared at the hearing via videolink, with Presiding Judge Iulia Motoc citing his prior “long journey."

It was mainly intended to confirm his identity and set some matters of procedure. It was over in under 30 minutes. But none of it was merely procedural—for every minute was historic—as Filipinos watched their former leader reduced to saying his name,

The former president of the Philippines, Rodrigo Duterte, appeared before judges at the International Criminal Court in The Hague on Friday, days after his arrest in Manila on murder charges linked to the deadly “war on drugs” that he oversaw while in office.