De Lima camp eyes habeas corpus plea

MANILA, Philippines — The legal team of detained former senator Leila de Lima is seriously considering filing a petition for a writ of habeas corpus after a Muntinlupa court dismissed her request for bail.

Lawyer Dino de Leon said they have made it clear in the past that a petition for habeas corpus is among the options they are considering for their client to regain her liberty.

“Right from the start, sinabi naming open kami pero hindi pa in all force. As of the moment we are heavily, heavily considering it,” De Leon said in an interview with “The Chiefs” on One News on Friday night.

The writ of habeas corpus is a fundamental right in the Constitution that protects an individual against unlawful and indefinite imprisonment.

De Lima has been in jail since 2017 due to drug charges against her filed during the administration of former president Rodrigo Duterte.

But unlike the case of Gigi Reyes, whose petition was granted by the Supreme Court, De Leon said their client’s situation is different as they have yet to avail of other legal remedies

Reyes is on trial for plunder and graft in connection with the pork barrel scam.

“Ang habeas corpus kasi in these proceedings are extraordinary remedies. So ibig sabihin kailangan i-avail mo muna ‘yung primary remedy,” De Leon said.

De Lima’s lawyers earlier said they will file a motion for reconsideration after Judge Romeo Buenaventura of the Muntinlupa City Regional Trial Court Branch 256 junked her bail plea.

While mapping out their next legal move, De Leon said the Department of Justice (DOJ) should stop the political persecution of their client.

“Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla previously said they will not object if De Lima would file a habeas corpus petition,” De Leon said, adding that the DOJ “can easily withdraw its case if they find these pieces of evidence incredible. And they are incredible.”

De Lima’s lawyer said the DOJ should prove that it is open to the possibility of their client getting temporary liberty through actions, not just words.

EU urged to take action

Meanwhile, foreign governments concerned over De Lima’s continuing detention should take action and press the Marcos administration to drop the remaining charges against her, the Human Rights Watch (HRW) said yesterday.

HRW senior Asia researcher Carlos Conde said the denial of De Lima’s motion for bail in the last of the three drug charges against her “illustrates the dysfunction and politicized nature of the Philippines justice system.”

He cited a provision of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which states that it “shall not be the general rule that persons awaiting trial shall be detained in custody.”

“At least two witnesses against de Lima were convicted drug dealers, one of whom has recanted, while another key witness, former prisons official Rafael Ragos, retracted his testimony. This retraction led to de Lima being acquitted of another charge, but the court, which ignored both the retraction and acquittal before denying her bail, ignored this,” Conde said.

Despite concerns over the country’s human rights situation, the HRW official said the Philippines continues to benefit from the European Union’s (EU) Generalized Scheme of Preference Plus (GSP+), which grants tariff reductions based on the country’s respect of international human rights conventions.

“While the EU has expressed concerns over de Lima’s case and other abuses, it is yet to publicly indicate benchmarks that the Philippines should meet in order to comply with its human rights obligations and retain its GSP+ benefits,” said Conde, noting that the European Parliament has repeatedly urged the withdrawal of the Philippines’ approval for the scheme if a lack of progress persists. — Janvic Mateo