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How the Supreme Court decided on key public interest issues
By BULATLAT STAFF
An independent judiciary is integral in a democratic society. After the ouster of former president Ferdinand E. Marcos, the framers of the 1987 Philippine Constitution included provisions guarding freedoms fought for by those who resisted the former dictator.
While safeguards against another tyrannical rule have been inserted in the highest law of the land, administrations after Marcos attempted to cling on to power. Even as the Constitution explicitly states the civilian authority is supreme over the military, succeeding administrations still resorted to militarist approach in dealing with social injustices. Some of the Martial Law era doctrines have remained, and are being used against critics and ordinary folk.
SC orders OSG to comment on Carpio motion over Parlade intimidation By NICOLE-ANNE C. LAGRIMAS, GMA News
Published January 29, 2021 10:54am The Supreme Court (SC) has ordered the Office of the Solicitor General (OSG) to answer a motion by anti-terror law petitioners led by retired justices Antonio Carpio and Conchita Carpio Morales expressing concern over a military official s intimidation of their group. The court gave the OSG 10 days to comment on the petitioners manifestation and motion. Last Monday, Carpio, Carpio Morales, and law professors from the University of the Philippines urged the SC to order the OSG to explain whether a Facebook post by Lt. Gen. Antonio Parlade is an official communication from the government or a public officer.
Published January 28, 2021 2:33pm The killings among workers in the judicial system of the Philippines should stop as this could eventually give criminals a stronger foothold in society, Integrated Bar of the Philippines president Domingo Cayosa said Thursday. During a hearing on the spate of killings in the country, including lawyers, Cayosa said Congress should really pass the bill creating the Philippine Marshall Service for protection of workers in the justice sector. He said it shall not only provide security for judges but also fiscals, and lawyers from the Public Attorney s Office, among others. Importante na makita ng taumbayan na yung mga icons or workers in the justice sector ay hindi ho sila namamatay with impunity, Cayosa said.
On December 21
st, a video of an off-duty police officer shooting a woman and her adult son at point-blank range in the Philippines went viral on social media, reviving calls for police reform. The local police chief has declared that Jonel Nuezca has turned himself in and admitted to the double homicide of his unarmed neighbours Sonya Gregario, 52, and her son Frank Gregario, 25, following a noise complaint.
The video shows Mr. Nuezca and his daughter arguing and attempting to arrest Mr. Gregario over the firing of a boga (an improvised bamboo cannon frequently used for New Year’s celebration). Ms. Gregario tightly embraces her son, pleading for him not to be taken away. With no sign of hesitation, Mr. Nuezca puts a bullet in each of his neighbours’ heads, in broad daylight, under bystanders’ terrified eyes.
The vague definition of terrorism under the Anti-Terrorism Act of 2020 threatens labor groups fighting for the rights of common workers, National Union of People’s Lawyers (NUPL) chairperson Neri Colmenares said Monday.