Asian lawyers’ group hits ‘repressive’ PH anti-terrorism bill

MANILA, Philippines — A group of lawyers from Asia and the Pacific has expressed concern over what it called a “repressive” anti-terrorism bill of the Philippine government which is feared as a potential state weapon against dissent.

In a statement Thursday, the Confederation of Lawyers in Asia and Pacific (COLAP) said the proposed measure is “violative of human rights and the due process of the law.”

The bill has already hurdled both houses of Congress and is now on President Duterte’s desk for his signature amid mounting protests and uproar on social media over provisions critics said would make it easier for authorities to suppress freedom of speech, harass the opposition, arrest activists, detain them without a warrant for longer periods, and brand anyone as a terrorist.

“COLAP underscores that the bill is a bill of attainder that punishes suspected individuals for organizations who are proscribed as terrorists and that the very broad and vague definition of terrorism under the bill poses danger to the basic freedoms of the people,” the group said.

“The suspect’s right to due process of law is virtually denied and the presumption of innocence until proven guilty by a court is virtually negated,” it added.

COLAP—which has members from the Bangladesh, India, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia,  Nepal, South Korea, Pakistan, Philippines, South Korea, and Vietnam—noted that the bill, when signed into law, will enable the President-backed Anti-Terrorism Council to label any individual or group as a terrorist “without the opportunity of being heard.”

“Any member or sympathizer of a proscribed organization is punished as a terrorist even if he or she does not actually take arms against the government,” COLAP said.

The group also pointed out that the bill encroaches on one’s privacy as it gives the government access to personal and bank information and freezing the bank accounts and assets.

It also claimed that the bill violates the sovereign rights of states and the internationally mandated norm that criminal jurisdiction is confined to the territories of a state, citing its extraterritorial nature

“Any person who may fall under the very broad and vague definition as terrorists may be arrested or extradited by the Philippine government. The assets of these foreigners or Filipino citizens may be frozen and confiscated by the Philippine government,” COLAP said.

GSG