Pinoys back martial law in Mindanao, but not elsewhere

A majority of Filipinos backed President Rodrigo Duterte’s declaration of martial law in Mindanao but a bigger number opposed its expansion to Luzon and the Visayas, a Social Weather Stations (SWS) survey showed.

Malacañang welcomed the survey results, saying these showed public agreement with the administration’s position that there was legal and factual basis for the declaration.

But a party-list lawmaker said that the survey also proved that support for martial law was “not solid and unanimous” given the widespread opposition to the expansion of its scope to the rest of the country.

The SWS Second Quarter 2017 survey showed that 57 percent of the 1,200 respondents agreed with the statement that Mr. Duterte made the “right decision” in declaring martial law in Mindanao.

The survey, however, found that 67 percent disagreed with the statement that Mr. Duterte should declare martial law in Luzon, and 63 percent disagreed with the statement that the President should also declare the same in the Visayas.

The SWS poll had a margin of error of plus-or-minus 3 percentage points.

The survey was conducted from June 23 to 26, or around one month after Mr. Duterte signed Proclamation No. 216 on May 23 which placed Mindanao under martial rule for 60 days after terrorists rampaged through Marawi City.

The Supreme Court justices last week affirmed Mr. Duterte’s declaration of martial law and suspension of the privilege of the writ of habeas corpus.

“The positive public response indicates that they believe the factual and legal basis of the proclamation of martial law for Mindanao, which includes the Maute Group’s attempt to remove allegiance from the government and to deprive the Chief Executive of his powers to enforce the laws and maintain public order and safety,” presidential spokesperson Ernesto Abella said in a statement.

“Hence, the need for the call of martial law, in case of invasion or rebellion, when the public safety requires it, as provided by the Constitution,” he added.

ACT Teachers Rep. Antonio Tinio said the poll also showed that many Filipinos believed martial law should be “more limited in scope.”

“The survey also revealed that support for the President’s declaration is mixed, with 40 percent believing that martial law should have been more limited in scope and not covered the entire island,” he said in a statement.

The lawmaker  was referring to the 29 percent of respondents who said that it should have been declared only in Marawi City and Lanao del Sur province, and 11 percent who said it should have been limited to Lanao del Sur and nearby provinces.

Tinio said it was clear that Filipinos were not amenable to expanding martial law to Luzon and the Visayas.

“The survey also shows that the same story line will not work for Luzon and Visayas, with an overwhelming majority opposed to the declaration of martial law in those areas,” he said.

Commenting on this, Abella said martial rule would be declared in Luzon and the Visayas only if the police and the military determine if there was such a need.

“As to the same survey showing that majority, except in Mindanao, opposes expanding martial law in Luzon and in the Visayas, it is noteworthy to mention that all these would depend on the situation on the ground as assessed and recommended by military and police authorities,” Abella said.

He added that the results validated the public’s “very good” satisfaction rating of Mr. Duterte in the same survey.

Support for martial law in Mindanao is highest among its residents (64 percent) and among Class ABC (70 percent). —With a report from Inquirer Research