Political justiceor true justice?

If anything, the arrest of Senator Leila de Lima has divided the country once again with people’s perception that we have another political revenge in the making. This perceived cycle of “political justice” was seen with Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, who spent five years in hospital arrest on charges of plunder before she was acquitted by the Supreme Court in July last year.

In retrospect, many believe GMA suffered from political persecution, with then Justice Secretary Leila de Lima disregarding the temporary restraining order that would have allowed the former president to seek medical treatment abroad, and the indifference showed by the Aquino administration for the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention’s ruling that GMA’s detention was arbitrary and violated international law on human rights. The UN body further said the continued detention of Arroyo was politically motivated and was a form of political persecution.

There are speculations that former president Noynoy Aquino might also suffer the same fate of his predecessor for his major role in the “Mamasapano massacre” that resulted in the death of 44 PNP Special Action Force members, and that all these are driven by political revenge and a continuation of the cycle of “political justice” in the aftermath of the 1986 EDSA revolution.

Right after the 1986 EDSA People Power Revolution, there was so much anger and hatred directed against the Marcoses and anyone connected with them. This started the cycle of “political justice” where judicial processes were used to limit, if not destroy, whatever remnant of political power or influence the old regime and its allies may have had.

A clear result was the 1987 “Cory Constitution” that has been described by many as “reactionary,” pointing to the fact that anything that had any Marcos imprint on it was totally removed. A huge majority of those appointed to the Constitutional Commission were also personal friends of Cory Aquino who, in a year, came out with a draft charter that was subsequently ratified through a plebiscite.

A justified or unjustified perception – depending on your political color – is that certain groups have been using the 1987 Constitution in the guise of “political justice” to support their own agenda, using the “EDSA formula” to remove leaders from office like the Joseph Estrada ouster – rationalized through a fabricated legal concept called “constructive resignation.”

Objective legal luminaries believe that recent developments are what this country need to finally get to the truth about what happened to the Mamasapano massacre, as well as the other issues that have hounded the Aquino administration like the PDAF/pork barrel scam. While several “big fish” like Jinggoy Estrada, Bong Revilla and former Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile were indicted by the anti-graft body, there is widespread suspicion that the Aquino administration had employed selective justice because Liberal Party allies seem to have been suspiciously left out. 

Enrile, who has since been released from detention, says that those who opposed the Aquino regime were persecuted and made to look “evil” – but now the shoe seems to be on the other foot, with many believing De Lima is simply reaping what she sowed because she used her position as Justice secretary to run roughshod over the legal rights of those perceived as political foes of the Aquino government.

What is clear, however, is that the country’s eternal curse – this deep political divide – is once again emerging. More than ever, the administration of President Rodrigo Duterte must show that it respects the judicial process and will apply the rule of law to one and all. The cycle of political revenge must stop if we seriously want to move forward and not get stuck in the past.

Trump and Duterte will likely get along

So much has been said about the similarities between President Rodrigo Duterte and US President Donald Trump, ranging from the superficial like their fiery rhetoric and colorful language down to the fact that they were seen as anti-establishment type of leaders and appealed to voters who were getting sick and tired of “politics as usual.”

The recent report of Amnesty International lumped the two leaders together in one sweep – which could open doors for the relationship between the two presidents to grow since both are individuals with strong personalities whose focus is on establishing order and ensuring the security of their respective nations and people. While Duterte is bent on eradicating the drug menace, Trump is intensifying efforts against illegal immigrants in the US.

While about 310,000 undocumented Filipinos are now seriously in peril of getting deported, President Duterte had said he will respect the decision of Trump, just as “The Donald” had also signified his understanding of Duterte’s fight against the illegal drugs trade in this country.

Our friends in Washington are convinced that the longstanding friendship between the United States and the Philippines will endure the test of time, especially with such groups like the US-Philippines Society that continues to work in strengthening bilateral ties not only in the cultural and people-to-people aspects but in terms of trade and investment.

Founded in 2012 with Metro Pacific’s Manny Pangilinan and former US Deputy State Secretary and Ambassador to the Philippines John Negroponte as founding co-chairmen, the USPS (see photos in This Week on PeopleAsia in today’s Allure section of the Philippine STAR) has been instrumental in raising awareness of the Philippines as a viable investment destination.

The USPS delegation from the US was here on a three-day visit. They had a meeting with the economic managers of the Duterte administration and they had a fruitful discussion regarding further trade and investment possibilities that the private sector can engage in.

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