Faculty members of
the University of the Philippines (UP) College of Law has made a statement that
the Anti-Terrorism bill will worsen the lives of everybody which are already
suffering from this global pandemic brought about by the novel coronavirus 2019
disease or COVID-19.
“In the midst of a
pandemic that has made our people’s lives even more difficult, more fearful,
and more uncertain, the Anti-Terrorism Law of 2020 provides even more reason to
be fearful and uncertain,” UP Law said in a statement.
The UP law faculty is
appealing to President Rodrigo Roa Duterte’s advisers on constitutional and
legal matters to “advise the President of the grave constitutional objections
and serious implications of the Anti-Terrorism Law of 2020, and for him to veto
the law.”
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“The Anti-Terrorism
Law of 2020 poses a clear and present danger to constitutionalism and the rule
of law,” UP Law statement said.
UP law is od the
opinion that there are provisions in the bill which are unconstitutional.
It noted, among
which, includes provision that “authorize executive orders for arrest and
prolonged detention beyond what the law and the Rules of Court provide” which
“pose a chilling effect on free expression and the right to organize and
assemble.”
Also, some provisions
they opined are “experiments of lawful dissent and principal advocacy”, citing
as an example provisions that protects legitimate exercise of civil and
political rights but includes a new offense of inciting to terrorism.
As regards the creation of the Anti-Terrorism Council which, though “a
purely executive body,” has “exclusively judicial power to order an arrest as
well to make a conclusion that a person is a terrorist (even on a prima facie
basis) for purpose of arrest and detention,” they find violative of the time
honored doctrine of separation of powers.
“Some of the more important provisions
protecting the citizenry against unwarranted arrests and charges have been
removed, resulting in less, not more, checks and balances against a law that
seeks to confer tremendous power on the executive branch,” it stated.
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