Australian missionary Sister Patricia Fox and her legal counsel, lawyer Maria Sol Taule, arrive at the Bureau of Immigration in Intramuros, Manila, to submit her memorandum. INQUIRER FILE / EARVIN PERIAS
Australian missionary Sister Patricia Fox on Monday asked the Bureau of Immigration (BI) to reconsider its decision ordering her deportation for being an “undesirable alien.”
In her motion, Fox, through her lawyers from the National Union of Peoples’ Lawyers (NUPL), maintained that her activities were “not illegal but a valid exercise of her right to free speech and peaceful assembly.”
The motion pointed out that what Fox had been doing was part of her missionary duties in the Philippines.
Fox’ lawyers said the BI had “no choice” but to abide by President Rodrigo Duterte’s remarks against her and had “already prejudged the case.”
Fox was flagged by the President for allegedly violating the Constitution by engaging in political activities not merited in her missionary visa.
The BI issued the deportation order on July 19 and ordered her name to be included in the bureau’s blacklist that would bar her from coming back to the Philippines. /cbb
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