Just weeks after the International Criminal Court (ICC) detained former President Rodrigo Duterte over alleged crimes against humanity linked to his administration’s bloody war on drugs, his son, Davao City 1st District Rep. Paolo Duterte, is set to visit at least 17 territories over two months.
A travel clearance issued by the House of Representatives, dated March 20, 2025, and signed by Secretary General Reginald Velasco, revealed that Rep. Duterte has been granted permission to travel to at least 16 countries plus Hong Kong from March 20 to May 10, 2025.
These include major destinations such as the United States, China, Japan, the United Kingdom, and several European and Southeast Asian nations. His itinerary spans Hong Kong, China, Malaysia, Indonesia, South Korea, Japan, Vietnam, Cambodia, the U.S., Australia, the UK, the Netherlands, Germany, France, Belgium, Italy, and Singapore.
Initially, Duterte requested a much shorter travel period and a more limited itinerary. On March 11, 2025, he wrote to House Speaker Martin Romualdez requesting travel clearance for a personal trip to the Netherlands and Japan from March 12 to April 15, 2025.
A few days later, on March 17, he submitted a revised request, this time asking for clearance to travel to London and China from March 17 to April 20.
By March 20, his plans had expanded significantly—now covering 17 destinations across three continents and extending until May 10.
The final travel clearance still lists the trip as a “personal” one, and Duterte stated in his letters that the expenditures for the trip would be covered by his personal funds.
Rep. Duterte’s travel comes at a time of intense scrutiny for his family. His father, former President Duterte, who served from 2016 to 2022, was recently detained by the ICC following years of investigation into the deaths of thousands of suspected drug offenders.
Meanwhile, his sister, Vice President Sara Duterte, is facing an impeachment complaint in Congress.
Rep. Duterte is also seeking re-election as the representative of Davao City’s 1st District in the 2025 midterm elections. However, rather than remaining in his district to campaign and share his legislative platform with voters, he opted to leave the country for nearly two months.
As of this writing, Duterte is currently in Hong Kong, the first stop listed in his approved travel itinerary.
No public statement has been released by Rep. Duterte’s office regarding the evolving scope of his travel or its timing in relation to both national political developments and the ongoing campaign period.