Guidelines on arrests of violators signed over a year into quarantine
MANILA, Philippines — National government agencies signed uniform guidelines outlining the government's strict enforcement of health and safety ordinances amid the coronavirus-induced community quarantines.
At a live-streamed ceremony Tuesday morning, representatives of the Interior and Justice Departments, as well as the Philippine National Police, signed the joint memorandum on violations of public health standards and safety protocols.
This comes after separate orders by President Rodrigo Duterte for police officers to arrest anyone caught without face masks, and later, all local chief executives of jurisdictions where mass gatherings occur.
Duterte's directives typically came during his public addresses and not through executive orders. In the first week after his order, the PNP "intensified police visibility" in Metro Manila, resulting in thousands of arrests and apprehensions.
"I'm sure that any police arrest will be anchored on existing laws and ordinances and will be subjected to initial investigation," Interior Secretary Eduardo Año said, calling the guidelines a "systematic mechanism to place the rule of law" above all.
This marks the first time uniform guidelines on arrests were issued since the start of the pandemic.
Earlier on, some local government units opted to stick to fines and penalties, while others went straight to arrests.
DILG told: Identify holding areas, file cases against barangay captains
The DILG is instructed in the document to hold accountable local government officials "who fail to implement and enforce all applicable guidelines issued by the president."
Local governments are also mandated to "identify and designate appropriate places that shall serve as holding areas" for anyone detained for violating health protocols.
"The holding area shall accommodate as many persons as possible, without crowding and/or violation of social distancing protocols, and shall be used for initial investigation and booking purposes," the document reads.
'Internal document'
Asked why uniform guidelines took a year to craft and formalize, the DILG chief said: "Since last year we've been implementing these protocols and ordinances. We were very confident that we would be okay after the first wave, but suddenly it became very alarming when we had the surge, and then we saw super-spreader events."
Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra himself acknowledged the need for uniform rules, saying the guidelines of the government's coronavirus "had no legal effect in itself."
"What may be applicable in one city may not be the same in another city...our law enforcement agents should be very familiar with the ordinance prevailing there. Because that's the legal framework of what they can do," he said.
He added that the joint memorandum circular was also essentially an internal document that only reiterated existing rules, but one that was directly addressing police and applicable to all areas, regardless of quarantine status.
Under the guidelines, the PNP "shall strictly observe, at all times, the rules of criminal procedure, particularly the rule on warrantless arrests, and relevant police protocols in the enforcement of the guidelines."
To date, 1,235,467 coronavirus cases have been recorded in the Philippines.
— Franco Luna
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