MANILA, Philippines — Naniniwala si Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin "Boying" Remulla na maaaring makalaya rin pansamantala si dating Sen. Leila de Lima dahil sa posibleng paglabag ng kanyang "right to speedy trial," matapos iutos ng Korte Suprema na palabasin sa detention ang lawyer na si Gigi Reyes sa isang petisyon ng habeas corpus.
Huwebes kasi nang mabigyan ng temporary release si Gigi Reyes — dating chief of staff ni presidential legal counsel Juan Ponce Enrile na idinidiin sa plunder — matapos ang halos siyam na taong detention. Pinagbigyan ng Korte Suprema ang hiling ng naunang "Writ of Interim Habeas Corpus."
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"The same reasoning may apply to Sen De Lima's case," wika ni Remulla sa mga reporters, Biyernes.
Following the release of Gigi Reyes — ex-aide of Chief Presidential Legal Counsel Juan Ponce Enrile — from detention through a Petition for Habeas Corpus, Justice Secretary Boying Remulla says: "The same reasoning may apply to Sen De Lima's case." @PhilstarNews
— Kristine Patag (@kristinepatag) January 20, 2023
Naniniwala naman si Solicitor General Menardo Guevarra na "case-to-case" basis ang pag-apply ng ruling kay Reyes. Aniya, depende raw ito sa facts ng bawat kaso at hindi ito "blanket precedent."
Iipinaliwanag naman ni Solicitor General Menardo Guevarra na ang habeas corpus ruling ng SC ay hindi nangangahulugang inaabswelto na ang kanyang pending cases.
Ganyunpaman, sabi ni Guevarra aaralin ng Office of the Solicitor General ang epekto ng sinabing desisyon.
"The [Office of the Solicitor General] will carefully study the ramifications of the court's resolution," wika niya.
Taong 2017 pa ay nakakulong na si De Lima. Naabswelto na siya sa isa sa tatlong drug charges habang star witness na si Rafael Ragos ang mga paratang nila sa dating senador.
'De Lima dapat subukan mag-file'
Dahil sa sariwang desisyon ng Supreme Court, hinihikayat ng abogado at dating SC spokesperson na si Ted Te na maghain din ng petisyon si De Lima para sa Interim Habeas Corpus.
"Since the January 17, 2023 Resolution in GR No. 254838 (1st Div) creating a WRIT OF INTERIM HABEAS CORPUS is not designated as one that applies pro hac vice (only in this instance), Leila De Lima should file a petition for HC... as a test," ani Te nitong Huwebes.
"As a legal remedy, this widens the space and opportunities for freedom for those who are being tried for offenses where bail is discretionary and whose rights to speedy trial are violated."
As a legal remedy, this widens the space and opportunities for freedom for those who are being tried for offenses where bail is discretionary and whose rights to speedy trial are violated.
— Ted Te (@TedTe) January 19, 2023
Dahil sa bagong ruling ng SC, naging available aniya ang bagong remedy ng temporary release, na may bisang "kahawig" ngunit kaiba nang kaonti sa piyansa.
"In this instance, the Guidelines issued suggest that the Rule on HC (R102) are deemed modified. So there is now effectively a range of HC writs that may be availed of: 1) pre-charge (cf. Ilagan), 2) post-conviction (cf. Gumabon), and 3) interim (pendente lite) (cf. Reyes)," sabi pa ni Te.
"Aside from Leila de Lima, other political offenders, whose cases have been dragging, would be among those who would test this new interim writ, for sure."
Iniuugnay si Reyes sa diumanoy' maanomalyang paggamit ng Priority Development Assistance Fund ni Enrile. Inaakusahan si Reyes na tumanggap ng P172.83 milyong kickback para kay Enrile kapalit ng pagbuhos daw ng PDAF ng dating senador sa mga pekeng non-government organizations na pinatatakbo raw ni Janet Lim-Napoles.
Political prisoners, saklaw din ba?
Ayon naman kay Bayan Muna executive president Carlos Isagani Zarate, na isa ring abogado, pagkakataon ang desisyon na ito ng SC na ilapat din ito kahit sa mga aktibistang matagal nang nililitis.
Kung hindi, maaaring sinyales daw itong iginagawad lang ang katarungan para sa mga may pera at kapangyarihan.
"Political prisoners similarly situated and under detention for quite some time now all over the country should invoke ASAP this Writ of Interim Habeas Corpus! If it applies to Gigi Reyes, there is no reason why the same should not be applied to them," wika ni Zarate.
"If this does not apply to political prisoners or even ordinary persons long deprived of liberty, then it can be read as another glaring example of the inequity of the country's justice system — that is, if you are not rich and/or powerful, you will languish in prison, even if you are innocent."
Gaya ni De Lima, maraming progresibo ang patuloy na naka-detain kahit na ilang taon nang gumugulong ang mga kaso. Marami sa mga ito, "gawa-gawang reklamo," sabi ng human rights groups. — may mga ulat mula kay Kristine Joy Patag