The House of Representatives on Monday authorized on third and ultimate studying a invoice offering free authorized help to police, army, and different uniformed personnel going through service-related fees, elevating fears amongst opposition leaders that it may assist safety forces accused of human rights violations.
House Bill 6509, which gathered 248 sure votes, three no votes and no abstentions, particularly supplies that uniformed personnel of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, the Philippine National Police (PNP), the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP), the Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP), and the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) are entitled to free authorized help in all levels of prison, civil, or administrative proceedings arising from service-related incidents.
Likewise, the measure strengthens the authorized workplaces of the Armed Forces, PNP, BJMP, BFP and PCG to render satisfactory and efficient free authorized help to certified personnel, in addition to grants authorities attorneys representing certified personnel to fee for precise bills and honoraria per look, as could also be licensed.
In addition, the measure permits officers or uniformed personnel of the Armed Forces, PNP, BJMP, BFP or PCG to be supplied with non-public counsel at the expense of the federal government when essential.
The free authorized help funded by the federal government may even cowl these officers or uniformed personnel of the AFP, PNP, BJMP, BFP or PCG who’ve pending instances, in addition to retired officers or uniformed for instances or fees involving service-related incidents dedicated whereas nonetheless in lively responsibility.
“By providing free legal assistance under this measure, our military and uniformed personnel who sacrifice their life and limb for the preservation of our national security, public order and public safety will be able to perform their sworn duties without fear of unwarranted cases filed against them for the purpose of harassment or reprisal,” Speaker Martin Romualdez of Leyte, Yedda Romualdez and Jude Acidre of Tingog party-list and Alexander Marcos of Ilocos Norte, the authors of the invoice, stated of their explanatory observe.
‘Supremacy of army, uniformed personnel’
House Minority Leader France Castro of ACT Teachers and Kabataan party-list Representative Raoul Manuel, nevertheless, the army and the police’s being concerned in instances of human rights violations.
“For everything that they do, they will conveniently say it is service-related, even if they are already committing human rights violations. Our Constitution mandates civilian supremacy, but the bills we are passing here, including the doubling of salary of uniformed personnel in 2018, shows the supremacy of the military and uniformed personnel in terms of salary benefits, and now, supremacy in protection from and access to justice,” Castro stated in explaining her no vote on the invoice.
Manuel, for his half, made point out of the youngsters killed by the police throughout their anti-drug warfare operations through the Duterte administration, equivalent to three-year-old Myca Ulpina and Kian delos Santos, 17.
“These are the kids killed by the police in line of their duty under war on drugs. Hindi masikmura ng kabataan na ang pera ng mamamayan ay mapupunta sa mga pulis na kayang kumitil ng buhay ng inosenteng bata para sa kanilang duty,” Manuel stated.
(We can’t abdomen that taxpayer cash will go in direction of law enforcement officials who’ve taken the lives of those harmless youngsters.)
“Justice was served to Kian years after his death despite overwhelming evidence. The ones who need free legal assistance are the poor people who are oppressed in the situation because they don’t have the resources to take their uniformed personnel abusers to court. Instead of spending public coffers on violators of human rights, why not spend it on their victims?” Manuel added. — BM, GMA Integrated News
