NUPL to appeal SC dismissal of bid to stop Marcos burial at LNMB

Lawyers and law students on Friday protest the burial of former President and dictator Ferdinand Marcos at the Libingan ng mga Bayani. TETCH TORRES-TUPAS

The legal battle on the burial of former President Ferdinand Marcos at the Libingan ng mga Bayani (LNMB) continues.

National Union of Peoples’ Lawyers (NUPL) president Edre Olalia on Friday said they would not give up the fight as they would file a motion for reconsideration on the Supreme Court’s decision dismissing their petition to stop the burial of the late dictator at the heroes’ cemetery.

NUPL as well as other law professors and students joined the Black Friday protest against the sneaky Nov. 18 burial of Marcos.

They said the burial was a sign of disrespect not only to the judicial process, as there was still no finality on the high court’s ruling, but also to the public.

The petitioners, in which NUPL is among the counsel, have yet to file a motion for reconsideration.

“This [protest] is complementary to the legal struggle and court processes because we believe that there is no decision of significant public interest that has no social context. This [Marcos burial] has a far reaching social context,” they said.

Olalia said even if Marcos had already been buried, it was important for the high court to issue a decision.

“The court can still lay down clear guidelines and principles on how we are going to treat lawyers like Marcos who gave the wrong example, especially to aspiring lawyers,” he said./rga