No more innocent civilians

In most civilized countries that have laws and a justice system, the principle is: “A man is presumed innocent until proven guilty.”

In the Philippines on the other hand, it is the innocent who must prove they are not guilty.

Our justice system as well as the Department of Justice has become so twisted and convoluted that people are not defended by the law but in fact have to defend themselves from the law.

Yesterday, I watched Justice Secretary Leila De Lima voice that very dilemma when she said that placing people like Mike Arroyo on the Immigration watch list was still necessary “at baka makalusot sila…at sa amin magalit ang tao”.

The English version of that is: it is necessary to place people like Mike Arroyo on the immigration watch list because they might slip out or get away and the people would be mad at the DOJ.

Later on, Secretary De Lima reportedly justified the HDO on Arroyo based upon the request of the Senate, which is conducting an inquiry on the PNP helicopter scam. The purpose of the HDO is to make sure that Arroyo shows up for the hearing.

Imagine that. Lawmakers and law enforcers no longer make any distinction between an invitation and a subpoena. The Senate no longer makes any distinction between an invited resource person and an accused individual. It seems they don’t want to wrestle over who is a cooperative witness and who is a “flight risk”.

Have we come to the point that lawmakers and law enforcers no longer recognize the very laws they wrote and the rights they inscribed upon our Constitution?

By short-circuiting the process, they have basically said; “guilty” and we don’t trust our international partners concerning extradition treaties and repatriation, or are they making an exemption to the rule?

I can understand if a judge makes a determination that there is probable cause for filing of charges and that there is a probability of flight on the part of the accused, to order a Hold Departure Order.

But is it proper for lawmakers to usurp the authority of the courts? If so where then is the balance of power between the Legislative, Judicial and Executive branches of government? Who stands to protect the rights of every citizen?

A lawyer sent me this quotation from Justice William Douglas that says it all: “The liberties of none are safe unless the liberties of all are protected.”

*      *      *

During the time of martial law in the Philippines, having your name on a Hold Departure Order was considered a badge of honor among many Filipinos who hated the regime.

Unfortunately that is no longer the case. Just like the flood of Temporary Restraining Orders or TROs issued by so-called “Hoodlums in Robes”, we now see an equivalent deluge of Hold Departure Orders or HDOs.

The HDOs have become tools of harassment in business and a great source of inconvenience and embarrassment for people who have the same name as those on the HDOs.

For years, I have heard and read reports about how HDOs have been placed on foreign business executives as a means of harassment and intimidation. The only sin of those expats was being officers of companies involved in local business feuds.

I can certainly relate to the indignity and injustice of having your name on the Immigration watch list.

For almost 15 if not 20 years, I have suffered the inconvenience and sometimes the humiliation of being delayed at the airport by immigration officials because of an HDO for “Luis Beltran” issued by Judge Lucas Bersamin who I believe is now a Supreme Court Justice or already retired.

This of course is a case of “SAME NAME” where a swindler who calls himself or is named “Luis Beltran” has been placed on the watch list.

That court order and the subsequent HDO does not provide details such as middle initial, date of birth, distinguishing marks, last known address or any useful information such as finger prints etc.

In fact I have long wondered if our courts and the Department of Justice actually follow a verification process to determine or to prove that a person is really who he or she claims to be.

During times spent in police precincts, I have never seen or heard police officers ask for IDs or proof of identity such as passports, license etc. As far as the courts go, they operate on the presumption that the police have done verification and that the clients and their lawyers know each other and are telling the truth.

As a result even BID Commissioner Ric David has been asking the Supreme Court and the DOJ to do something about the lack of information related to HDOs.

The greatest insult to me as a citizen of the republic is that I have been “advised” to secure a “not the same person” clearance.

I have been quietly minding my own business, dutifully obeying the laws of the land and through no fault of mine I must now prove my innocence even if I have not been charged of any crime in any court of law.

I also learned that unlike previous administrations where the clearance is secured from the BID, you now have to go to the Department of Justice because Secretary De Lima has decided that clearances must come from the DOJ and not the BID.

I pray that some of our friends in Congress would pass a law to be paired off with “The Miranda Rights”, which requires law enforcers and officers of the courts to meticulously establish the identity and background of any individual arrested or charged for committing a crime.

In this manner we might be able to somehow protect the innocent civilians from identity theft as well as being victimized for having the same name.

*      *      *

[email protected].