Gov’t’s partisan use of Anti-Terror Act to go after suspended lawmaker scored
MANILA, Philippines (Updated 2:08 p.m.; Aug. 2, 2023.)— The lawyer of Rep. Arnolfo Teves Jr. (Negros Oriental, Third District) has condemned the government’s designation of the suspended congressman as a terrorist, accusing them of “weaponizing” a controversial law that faced pushback before its enactment due to concerns over its potential misuse to suppress civil liberties.
Government agencies have allegedly taken advantage of the Anti-Terrorism Act for purposes it was not designed for after the recantation of key witnesses and failed attempts to summon Teves back to the country, among others, lawyer Ferdinand Topacio said in a statement.
The justice department said as early as April that it would designate Teves as a terrorist to force him to surrender in relation to the killing of Negros Oriental Gov. Roel Degamo.
In its decision Tuesday, the Anti-Terrorism Council (ATC) said that the terrorist tag slapped on Teves and his brother, Pryde Henry, and several others is in connection to the alleged crimes they committed in the bloodbath that killed Degamo and eight others. The brazenness of the crime can "terrorize" others, the ATC resolution read.
The ATC’s move is a “shocking reminder that even under constitutional and republican regime, the return to a government of men and not of laws can always ensue, especially for those targeted for destruction by the present dispensation,” Topacio said.
While Topacio this year has repeatedly argued against the use of the Anti-Terrorism Act to force Teves to surrender, he previously voice support for the passage of the measure in 2020.The lawyer went so far as to call for a boycott of Jollibee Foods Corporation after a lawmaker critical of the Anti-Terror bill posted a photo beside the mascot of Jollibee with a caption containing the #JunkTerrorBill hashtag.
Similarly, the counsel for Nigel Electona — reportedly the chief security officer of an agricultural firm owned by the Teves family and among the 13 tagged as terrorists — said the decision “smacks of oppression, abuse of power and the exact paradigm of capricious disregard of due process of law.”
Lawyer Michael Mella said that no evidence points to Electona providing "material support" to a terrorist and that the decision of the ATC is "too irresponsible and oppressive."
In its decision, which was approved July 26, the ATC alleged that Teves and his armed group violated the Anti-Terrorism Act, particularly the law’s Section 4 for committing terrorism, Section 6 for planning, training, preparing and facilitating the commission of terrorism, Section 10 for recruitment to and membership in a terrorist organization, and Section 12 for providing material support to terrorists.
Their assets have since been frozen by the Anti-Money Laundering Council following the terrorist tag.
The Free Legal Assistance Group, one of the groups that petitioned against the Anti-Terrorism Act in 2022, warned that the provisions of the contentious law remain dangerous due to its failure to "define with clarity the offense of ‘terrorism’" and the sweeping powers it granted to the Anti-Terrorism Council to issue arrest orders and authorize extended detention periods on mere suspicion.
Anti-terror law as 'crutch'
Meanwhile, Makayan bloc lawmakers, staunch critics of the Anti-Terrorism Act, condemned the "dangerous trend" of using the law to apprehend suspected criminals without due process.
The government already has sufficient powers and enough laws to go after and apprehend Teves without using the terrorist designation, the lawmakers said in a statement Wednesday.
"The invocation of the Anti-Terrorism Law in this context not only attempts to justify its existence but also fails to address the underlying issues surrounding the effective investigation and apprehension of suspects," the Makabayan lawmakers said.
The Makabayan bloc lawmakers also recalled the government's use of the Anti-Terrorism Act as a "crutch" in going after specific individuals "when it cannot get what it wants from the courts," citing as an example the ATC's recent move to designate as terrorists red-tagged Cordillera activists and advocates for the rights of Indigenous peoples, namely Windel Bolinget, Stephen Tauli, Jennifer Awingan-Taggaoa and Sarah Abellon-Alikes.
"This is what we have been arguing before the Supreme Court before: the unilateral power of the Terror Council to designate will practically deprive the courts of their power to adjudicate, and any citizen of their rights. Resorting to the Anti-Terrorism Law for crime solving undermines the principles of justice and human rights, and risks further eroding public trust in our justice system," the lawmakers said.
Next moves
At a virtual press conference Tuesday, Topacio said they are reviewing legal actions that could counter the terrorist designation.
Teves, meanwhile, alleged that he government wants to freeze his assets to restrict his movement and that the government is “using him” to distract the public from pressing issues.
Rep. Arnie Teves holds a virtual presscon following the Anti-Terror Council's move to designate him as a terrorist.
— Cristina Chi ???? (@chicristina_) August 1, 2023
Teves claimed the government is using him to distract the public from other pressing issues, which he said is displayed in his new Zoom background @PhilstarNews pic.twitter.com/lMOqIhmXJ9
Teves has been suspended twice by the House of Representatives for failing to return to the country and exhibiting "disorderly behavior” in doing so. The embattled lawmaker has been accused of hatching the plot to kill Degamo and eight others.
Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla previously asserted that Teves is the primary mastermind behind the killing of his political rival, describing him as an "executive producer" of the plan. Teves has consistently refuted this allegation.
Under Section 25 of Republic Act No. 11479 or the Anti-Terrorism Act of 2020, the Anti-Terrorism Council may designate an individual upon finding of probable cause that they committed, attempted to commit or conspired to commit the following acts:
- Terrorism
- Threat to commit terrorism
- Planning, training, preparing and facilitating the commission of terrorism
- Conspiracy to commit terrorism
- Proposal to commit terrorism
- Inciting to commit terrorism
- Recruitment to and membership in a terrorist organization
- Providing material support to terrorists
— with reports by James Relativo, Gaea Katreena Cabico, Xave Gregorio and Kristine Joy Patag
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