(Continued from June 20-21 issue)
FOR A proposed measure that bodes substantial restrictions on civil liberties and the grant of inordinate powers to law-enforcement agencies, this apparent effort on the part of the House majority to swiftly pass the Anti-Terrorism Bill poses a serious threat to all critics of government and independent-minded individuals, regardless of party or ideology, and even the ordinary citizen on the street.
This threat, however, is especially real and greater for organizations that have been relentlessly and viciously targeted and red-tagged by the likes of NTF-ELCAC as “terrorist” groups or fronts essentially because of the pro-poor and progressive agenda and advocacies that they carry.
The bill, should it become law, will only serve to worsen the climate of impunity that has made the Philippines fertile ground for extra-judicial killings, illegal arrests, and crackdowns against activists and progressive organizations and even ordinary citizens.
As such, there is an urgent need to stop the passage of this bill at the earliest opportunity. The dangers it poses are incalculable, and the risks are too great for people to turn a blind eye under the misguided assumption that their own freedoms would not be affected.
Those who may think that these warnings amount to fear-mongering need only recall the events of the past two months.
In the midst of the coronavirus pandemic, the Duterte administration has set up a junta-like body, in the guise of an inter-agency task force made up of military men, to dictate public health policy, control local government units, and practically run the affairs of the entire country.
It has let loose the police and the military, even barangay officials, on a defenseless, hungry, and desperate population, leading to an avalanche of human rights violations, misconduct and abuse of authority, and even reports of sexual abuse perpetrated by law-enforcement officials.
It has resorted to immediately arresting and jailing tens of thousands for protesting the lack of government support, criticizing official action or inaction, violating unreasonable curfews, or simply stepping out of where they reside without facemasks or documentation.
Worst, this government has used the health emergency as a backdrop, even a justification, to whip its various agencies into action for the singular purpose of clamping down on dissent. From the NBI eagerly arresting people without warrants because of their social media posts, to the NTC shutting down ABS CBN, to the police and barangay officials berating, arresting, if not beating up, activists and volunteers who participate in relief efforts for poor communities or the legions of famished poor who have no choice, the government has shown no tolerance for criticism. And they take their clear cue from above.
Even now, President Duterte and his people have displayed their authoritarian tendencies. Allowing this administration, the added leeway and greater authority that come with a newer, more oppressive anti-terrorism law would open the floodgates to graver forms of abuses. The dangers that come with the Anti-Terrorism Bill are all too real to be ignored, and we cannot and should not wait until the final nail in the coffin has been hammered down.
The arguments for the passage of this bill – posed by the Duterte Administration, its allies in Congress, and defense officials at large – all boil down to trusting them with the awesome power the law would bring as a means to combat the threat of terrorism.
Yet, candidly, without a shadow of doubt, this administration is not even remotely worthy of that trust.
Recent events have shown that the greater threat comes from a government ignorant, even outright dismissive, of the constitutional limits of its own authority and the importance and value of the rights and liberties of its people.
It is, therefore, imperative that attempts to pass the Anti-Terrorism Bill be fervently resisted, not only to protect those voices critical of the government, but also to protect everyone else who wishes to speak freely about matters of public interests and concern, without censorship or fear of punishment, without someone looking over our shoulder or stalking us, mostly without our knowing it.
This proposal reduces our Bill of Rights to a sheer litany of what every civilized society should aspire to achieve. It even showcases the government’s total abandonment of its international human rights obligations to the people. Hence, this draconian proposed measure has no place in our homes, in our schools, in our workplaces, in our communities. It is going back to the days of disquiet and nights of rage./PN
