Pimentel on case of Italian political party exec: Foreigners not above PHL laws

Foreigners who set foot on Philippine soil should remember that they are not above Philippine laws, Senate President Aquilino "Koko" Pimentel III said Tuesday.

Pimentel's remark came after the Bureau of Immigration (BI) denied entry and excluded Italian national and Party of European Socialists deputy secretary-general Giacomo Filibeck who had criticized the Duterte administration's war on drugs.

"There is a law here in the Philippines (and this is also generally the rule in many countries) that foreigners are not allowed to meddle in our internal politics or political matters," Pimentel said in a statement.

"If we want Filipinos to follow our laws then we should show our own people that foreigners are not above our laws!" he added.

The BI said Filibeck has been blacklisted for denouncing the killings related to the administration's campaign against illegal drugs when he visited the country last year.

"He was not supposed to do that because being a tourist he does not enjoy the rights and privileges of a Philippine citizen, particularly the exercise of political rights which are exclusively reserved to Filipinos," Immigration Commissioner Jaime Morente said in a statement.

Pimentel said that when he visits other countries, he himself is very careful not to interfere with their domestic political issues, as he knows their laws and he is a law-abiding citizen.

"These foreigners who come here should not feel that they are 'superior' to us and hence above our laws! All should follow the law!" he added.

For his part, Senate Majority Leader Vicente Sotto III said Filibeck is an "undesirable alien."

"Ah e undesirable alien yun. Nanggugulo lang sa Pinas," Sotto said in a separate statement. — Erwin Colcol/RSJ, GMA News