Palace slams US lawmakers on terror law

MANILA, Philippines — Presidential spokesman Harry Roque Jr. yesterday scored US lawmakers for calling for the repeal of the Philippine Anti-Terror Law, saying the country is no longer a colony of the United States.

Roque urged the US congressmen not to meddle with the Philippines’ existing systems.

“It’s now in the hands of the court. To the congressmen who signed it, we have a working judicial system that we can rely on to rule on the constitutionality of the Anti-Terror Law,” Roque said in a virtual presser.

Earlier, Roque mentioned the way the US maltreated Filipinos during 48 years of colonization from 1898 to 1946.

There are pending petitions before the Supreme Court [SC] on the constitutionality of the Anti-Terror Law, which will take effect on July 19.

At least 45 US lawmakers urged the government to repeal the Anti-Terror Act of 2020.

US congresswoman Jan Schakowsky said she and the 44 other lawmakers have sent a letter with a call for the repeal of the law to Ambassador Jose Romualdez.

Schakowsky said Republic Act 11479 gives the Duterte administration a “new weapon to suppress dissent.”

She said the Anti-Terror Law could worsen attacks on ordinary people.

Meanwhile, labor groups filed a petition before the SC questioning the constitutionality of some provisions of the Anti-Terrorism Act of 2020.

The groups said the passage of the law places workers in a “clear and present danger” of being tagged as terrorists.

The petitioners included the Federation of Free Workers led by Jose Sonny Matula, Nagkaisa Labor Coalition, Public Services Labor Independent Confederation, National Union of Workers in Hotel and Restaurant and Allied Industry and Partido ng Manggagawa.

The groups sought a temporary restraining order and writ of preliminary injunction against the Office of the President, Senate and House of Representatives.

They said the government committed grave abuse of discretion for passing the Anti-Terror Act of 2020 into law.

The petitioners asked the court to declare certain provisions of RA 11479 unconstitutional and prohibit the respondents from implementing these.

The petitioners said that while they recognize government’s efforts to protect the people, they believe that the Anti-Terror Law runs counter to the Constitution.

The groups said some of the Anti-Terror Law’s provisions violate the workers’ rights.

The law was signed by President Duterte on July 3. Evelyn Macairan Pia Lee-Brago