DAVAO CITY (MindaNews / 25 August) – “The key to the Door of Due Process or the Right to be Heard by a court of law is in his own hands,” the Dean of the University of Mindanao College of Law said of fugitive pastor Apollo Quiboloy who has eluded arrest for months now despite two warrants for criminal cases including large-scale human trafficking and sexual abuse, and a contempt citation by the Senate.
“The Constitutional Right of Pastor Quiboloy to Due Process of Law will have no operational meaning unless the Pastor is tried in a Court of Law,” said Dean Antonio Arellano, the lone surviving member among the three human rights lawyers arrested here in 1985 for alleged rebellion during the dictatorship of President Ferdinand Marcos Sr.
“But judicial proceedings cannot commence until the Court acquires jurisdiction over his person through the service of the warrant of arrest,” Arellano said, adding that jurisdiction refers to the authority of the court to hear and decide a case.
“In sum, the key to the Door of Due Process or the Right to be Heard by a Court of Law is in his own hands. In other words, ‘Si Pastor lamang po ang makakabukas ng Pinto ng Hustisya. Na sa kamay ni Pastor ang susi ng pinto!’” said Arellano, a member of the 25-member Consultative Committee appointed under the Duterte administration to review the 1987 Constitution on the shift to a federal system of government.
Arellano’s statement came following the police operation on Saturday inside the 30-hectare Kingdom of Jesus Christ compound beside the airport here that has continued until Sunday.
In a statement, the Integrated Bar of the Philippines (IBP)-Davao City chapter asked the police, the accused, and KOJC followers to observe the rule of law.
“We must abide by the rule of law because the consequence of failing to do so will be chaos in our society and violence against our citizens,” it said. It said that the law enforcers’ authority and duty in serving the arrest warrants are subject to certain limitations.
“If the police have good basis to believe that a person to be arrested is inside a certain place, they have the right to enter the place and even to break into such place if refused admittance after announcing their authority and intention,” it said.
The lawyers’ group reminded the police that they do not have the authority to occupy the premises or exclude any lawful occupant from entry and egress after “conducting a search for the person, or persons, to be arrested within a reasonable period of time.”
“Likewise, the use of violent force, is allowed only when the police officers are, themselves, exposed to the danger of bodily harm in the exercise of their functions. In any case, the degree of the force must always be proportionate to the amount of danger,” it said.
The IBP-Davao, meanwhile, reminded the KOJC followers that they are likewise “duty bound by law to allow the police to exercise their authority” and that any attempt to stop or hinder them from excessing their mandate may constitute a criminal liability for obstruction of justice, or worse if any act of violence is committed.
“The subjects of any warrant of arrest are also duty bound to abide by the orders of our courts and thus, should surrender peacefully so that our judicial system can perform its function, and the judicial process can be applied in the course of law,” it said. As part of due process, the group said the accused in any criminal case may avail of the legal remedies to protect and enforce their rights.
Reacting to Quiboloy supporters’posts asking where the human rights (HR) defenders were during the police operations, Dr. Jean Lindo, chair of Gabriela Southern Mindanao, said: “Now let’s try to use HR lens. The pastor has violated women and IP communities. He is powerful. He can defend himself. In HR, you defend the powerless, the voiceless, the excluded, the deprived, the poor, the oppressed, the exploited, the dispossessed, and those who suffer from the system.”
“It is out of context to blame the absence of ordinary citizens who defend the rights of the powerless. Why look for us? There are government agencies that are in the best position to help. The allied political parties can help… with all the logistics they have, they can help. But to blame us, HR defenders for not being present? And please don’t spread narratives about the CSOs (civil society organizations) and rights defenders aligning themselves with the President (Ferdinand Marcos Jr.) because we suffered the biggest casualties (and the worst) throughout the decades from the various regimes (from Marcos Sr to Marcos, Jr). This narrative of aligning with authoritarian people is completely false and boring as well.” (MindaNews)
