Court of Appeals junks NUPL’s bid for writ of amparo

The Court of Appeals has denied the National Union of Peoples' Lawyers' petition for a writ that would have provided its members protection from what they said were state-perpetrated attacks.

In a July 26 decision received by NUPL on Monday, the Former Special 15th Division denied the NUPL's petition for the writs of amparo and habeas data after finding that the group presented insufficient evidence and failed to prove military officials' participation in the alleged acts of harassment.

The CA likewise ruled that President Rodrigo Duterte -- who, while generally immune from suit may still be impleaded in an amparo suit given certain conditions —must be dropped as a respondent in the case because the NUPL failed to establish his accountability.

A group of human rights lawyers founded in 2007, the NUPL alleged that its members have been the subject of red-tagging, or the act of being falsely linked to communist rebels, surveillance, intimidation, threats, and even fatal attacks in the performance of their duties.

The writ of amparo is a remedy that protects a person's right to life, liberty and security, while the writ of habeas data protects a person's right to control information about oneself, particularly when the information is collected unlawfully and for unlawful purposes, according to the appeals court.

"We hold that the individual petitioners failed to substantially prove that their life, liberty, and security are threatened with violation," the CA ruled, referring only to the NUPL members, not the organization itself, that it found had legal standing to bring the suit.

"While mere threats fall within the mantle of protection of the writs of amparo and habeas data, the alleged threats imputed against the respondents herein are not supported by substantial evidence, thus stand on nebulous grounds," it added.

‘No evidence’

Even assuming there was sufficient evidence, the NUPL also failed to prove that the alleged attacks were directly caused by the lawyers' association with the NUPL, the CA said.

The court added that the lawyers were unable to prove the respondent military officials' participation in the distribution of posters, flyers and other materials where they were supposedly wrongly linked to communist rebels.

"There is also no evidence that respondents are keeping records of investigations and other reports about the petitioners or their alleged ties with the CPP-NPA (Communist Party of the Philippines - New People's Army)," the court held.

The decision was penned by Associate Justice Pedro Corales, with concurrences by Associate Justices Stephen Cruz and Germano Francisco Legaspi.

It was issued shortly after the same division rejected the NUPL's request for a temporary protection order, a relief they sought while awaiting the resolution of the main amparo case.

"This is not really surprising nor unexpected," NUPL president Edre Olalia said of the ruling. "It only strengthens impressions that amparo as a legal remedy has time and time again failed expectations of victims for immediate and judicial protection."

"It also reinforces the studied view that domestic remedies for redress of rights violations are by and large ineffective and unavailing especially under the present political situation," Olalia said in a statement.

He said the NUPL will contest the decision before the Supreme Court (SC).

Another CA division had earlier denied an amparo petition by human rights watchdog Karapatan, women's group Gabriela, and the Rural Missionaries of the Philippines -- a decision the three organizations appealed before the SC on Monday.

"We maintain that our petition is urgent amid the spate of intensified red-tagging, illegal arrests, and killings perpetrated against us by this government," Karapatan Secretary General Cristina Palabay said in a statement.—NB, GMA News