Presidential spokesperson Harry Roque (Photo by JOAN BONDOC / Philippine Daily Inquirer)
Presidential spokesperson Harry Roque on Tuesday challenged Commission on Human Rights (CHR) Commissioner Roberto Cadiz to name the lawyers he referred to as those who had been mocking the law and human rights.
“So I’d like to challenge Commissioner Cadiz, name names,” Roque said in a Palace briefing. “Who is the lawyer who he alleges to be making a mockery out of the rule of law and human rights? And who are the lawyers assisting this main lawyer whom he says is mocking human rights and the rule of law?”
Asked if he felt alluded to Cadiz’s remarks, he said: “Let him specify who he’s referring to.”
In a press briefing on Monday, Cadiz said some lawyers, whom he did not identify, were mocking the law and human rights in the country.
“Justice, human rights, and the rule of law are being mocked by a lawyer aided and abetted by other lawyers,” Cadiz said.
Amid the spate of killings in the country in relation to the Duterte administration’s war on drugs, Cadiz urged lawyers to stand up for the rule of law and human rights.
Reacting to Roque’s dare, Cadiz said: “I view the challenge as a rhetorical one, because he knows very well who they are.”
“Mr. Roque is a big disappointment to the human rights community and I do not blame him if he felt alluded to as one of them,” he added.
During his speech at the Integrated Bar of the Philippines (IBP) press conference in Pasig City on Monday, Cadiz said: “Justice, human rights, and the rule of law are being mocked by a lawyer aided and abetted by other lawyers.”
This, he said, is the current political situation of the country under President Rodrigo Duterte. /atm