DOJ drops criminal raps vs activist

MANILA, Philippines - Justice Secretary Leila de Lima has ordered the dismissal of criminal charges against an activist who was arrested in 2011 after he was accused of being member of the communist movement.

Upon review of the resolution of the investigating fiscal, De Lima reversed the finding of probable cause on charges of illegal possession of explosives against activist Ericson Acosta.

In a 15-page resolution issued yesterday, De Lima granted Acosta’s petition for review and ordered the provincial prosecutor of Samar to withdraw the case filed against him in court due to technicalities.

“In the instant case, we find that numerous irregularities have transpired in the arrest, detention and turnover of respondent Acosta to the police authorities, which leads us to seriously doubt the validity of the charges against him,” stated the order signed by Undersecretary Francisco Baraan III for De Lima.

First, De Lima said the arresting soldiers violated Section 3, Rule 113 of the Revised Rules on Criminal Procedure when they failed to immediately bring Acosta to the nearest police station or jail.

She added that Acosta was “never provided by the arresting officers with the opportunity to communicate with his lawyer and/or members of his family.” She also cited the lack of proper inventory of the grenade allegedly seized from Acosta.

De Lima, who fought for the rights of arrested activists during her stint as former Commission on Human Rights chairperson, gave the handling fiscal five days to comply with the resolution.

Acosta, 40, was arrested in San Jorge town in Samar in 2011 while conducting human rights research. He was suspected of being a member of the communist movement.

He was charged with illegal possession of explosives before the Samar regional trial court. Pending trial, his lawyers from the National Union of Peoples’ Lawyers filed a petition for review with the DOJ in September 2011.

In a statement, Acosta welcomed the DOJ ruling, saying, “There is an urgent need to continue the struggle to free all political prisoners.”