LIKE OLD FRIENDS Maria Clara Sarmenta, Sen. Franklin Drilon and Iluminada Gomez listen to retired judge Harriet Demetriou (second from left). —CONTRIBUTED PHOTO
MANILA, Philippines — On a bright Saturday morning, mothers Maria Clara Sarmenta and Iluminada Gomez chatted happily with the exuberant Harriet Demetriou, exchanging pleasantries like old friends inside a restaurant.
The last time they saw one another was in a packed courtroom in Pasig City in 1995, Sarmenta recalled.
Demetriou, then a Pasig City regional trial court judge, had convicted former Calauan Mayor Antonio Sanchez for the gruesome deaths of her daughter Eileen and Gomez’s son Allan.
Linked by history
“(Gomez and I) still see each other once in a while, but this is the first time we had a proper reunion,” Sarmenta said. “But this is the first time in 24 years we saw the judge and (Senate Minority Leader Franklin) Drilon.”
For Drilon, who was the justice secretary at the time Sanchez was convicted, the reunion was a “powerful symbol… to help restore the people’s faith in the justice system.”
“Symbols are important, and the symbol of Mrs. Sarmenta and Mrs. Gomez reuniting with the judge who made sure that justice was done is important,” he said.
Forever linked by history, the four found themselves in the news recently after Sanchez was almost released for supposedly qualifying under the good conduct time allowance.
Both mothers had appeared before the Senate to relive their grief over their children’s deaths, a stark reminder of why such a man should not be freed from prison.
“But we’re relieved that, at least, we know he would not be free, roaming our streets,” Sarmenta said.
The reunion was “light, congenial,” Drilon said.
The Gomezes and the Sarmentas mostly caught up with each other’s lives, expressing relief that the fresh ordeal was behind them—for now.
“But I have faith in our justice system,” Gomez said. “I fully trust that our government has heard us.”