Sereno ouster sends chilling message to judiciary, says UN expert

MANILA, Philippines — The judicial independence in the Philippines is under threat following the removal of Maria Lourdes Sereno as the country’s top judge at the hands of her colleagues in the Supreme Court, a United Nations human rights expert warned.

Diego García-Sayán, UN special rapporteur on the independence of judges and lawyers, stressed that it is the duty of the government and other institutions to respect and observe the  independence of the judiciary.

He said that the landmark decision of the high court granting the quo warranto petition against Sereno seems directly related to the threats made by President Rodrigo Duterte against the former chief magistrate.

“The derogatory statements and threats by President Duterte, which have been televised, broadcast on radio and carried by newspapers, constitute a vicious attack on the independence of the judiciary,” García-Sayán said.

The former Justice and Foreign Affairs minister of Peru added that such threats “appear to have had a ‘chilling effect’ on the other Supreme Court justices, who may have been deterred from asserting their judicial independence and exercising their freedom of expression.”

Although he repeatedly denied having a hand in the quo warranto petition filed by Solicitor General Jose Calida, Duterte declared that Sereno is “bad” for the country.

“I am putting you on notice that I am now your enemy. And you have to be out of the Supreme Court,” the chief executive said on April 9.

READ: Duterte tells Sereno: I am now your enemy

Four days later, Duterte once again lashed out at Sereno calling her “ignorant” and “dumb.”

He recalled the time when Sereno cautioned judges identified by the president as those linked to illegal drugs against submitting to warrantless arrests.

“The use of such derogatory language against the highest-ranking magistrate in the country sends a clear message to all judges of the Philippines: in the so-called ‘war on drugs,’ you’re either with me or against me,” García-Sayán said.

Sereno on Wednesday filed a 205-page motion for reconsideration, asking the Supreme Court to reverse the historical May 11 decision.

“The right to a fair trial presupposes the existence of an independent and impartial tribunal,” the UN special rapporteur said.

He added: “It is high time to adopt concrete measures to restore judicial independence, which is enshrined in the national constitution as well as in international human rights treaties.”

The International Commission of Jurists on Thursday said that the ouster of Sereno has a hand in the “overall deterioration” of the rule of law in the Philippines.

READ: Sereno’s ouster contributes to deterioration of rule of law, says int’l group of jurists