The Philippine Senate, acting as an impeachment court, opened the trial of Vice President Sara Duterte on Monday in a politically volatile event that will unfold against the backdrop of her bitter feud with President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.
More than 6,000 police officers, including anti-riot squads, were deployed to secure the Senate, where about 400 anti-Duterte demonstrators converged, chanting “Convict Sara now.” Duterte did not appear but was represented by her lawyers at the start of the trial, which will run for 92 days, according to a pretrial plan seen by The Associated Press.
If convicted of the charges, which include amassing unexplained wealth and publicly threatening to have Marcos assassinated, Duterte may be permanently disqualified from holding public office. She denies the charges.
The vice president is the daughter of former President Rodrigo Duterte, Marcos’ predecessor. He was arrested last year on orders of the International Criminal Court and flown to The Hague.
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