Various lawmakers and lawyers have challenged the constitutionality of the new Anti-Terrorism Law as they filed separate petitions against it before the Supreme Court.
In a report by CNN Philippines, various lawyers and representatives from the Congress flocked the high court in order to file a petition to issue a temporary restraining order against Republic Act No. 11479 or the Anti-Terrorism Law – which was recently signed by President Rodrigo Duterte.
Among those who filed petitions include Far Eastern University Institute of Law Dean Mel Sta. Maria and six law professors. The dean’s group said that the provisions of the law can be used to abuse citizens’ freedom of speech.
READ ALSO: Duterte signs Anti-Terror Bill into law
“There can be no doubt that this law imperils the constitutional rights and liberties of our citizens. Its provisions are a lure to abuse and misuse, hard to resist on the part of malicious government officials. The chilling effect on the freedom of expression, speech and the press are all too real,” the group said in their petition.
The House of Representatives’ Makabayan bloc—composed of Representatives Carlos Zarate, Ferdinand Gaite, Eufemia Cullamat, Arlene Brosas, France Castro, and Sarah Elago, among others— also filed petitions against the law, noting that it threatens their safety as it allows for red-tagging and terrorist-tagging against activists and dissenters.
“The continued and persistent terrorist-tagging against Petitioners and their partylist organizations, including MAKABAYAN, by the State forces, using public funds, shows the immediacy of the danger of sustaining some direct injury on their part once the assailed Anti-Terrorism Act of 2020 is implemented,” they said in the petition.
Atty. Howard Calleja and Bro. Armin Luistro from the De La Salle Brothers also led a group of lawyers to challenge the law’s legality before the Supreme Court—especially when it comes to the provision allowing for the wiretapping of suspected terrorists.
In addition, Senior Associate Justice Antonio Carpio and Chief Justice Diosdado Peralta have also expressed their intention to challenge several provisions of the new Anti-Terrorism Law.
SEE ALSO: President Duterte awaits vetting from local officials for anti-terror bill
