UP law profs, 700 others urge SC to probe requests for lawyers of suspected communists

Faculty members of the University of the Philippines College of Law have urged the Supreme Court (SC) to investigate police requests for names of lawyers handling cases of suspected communists.

Their appeal to the SC came after they found out through inquiries with other lawyers and court officials that aside from the Calbayog City Regional Trial Court similar requests have also been received by other judges.

In a letter signed by UP Law dean Edgardo Carlo Vistan II on Tuesday, the faculty members asked the high court to form a committee that will probe the circumstances behind the requests and the connection, if any, behind such attempts to profile and/or red-tag lawyers.

They urged the SC to verify the number of lawyers killed or attempted to be killed in connection with any similar threats and explore the possibility of promulgating rules to protect lawyers from such threats.

The law professors also suggested to the SC to get updates from the Justice and Interior departments on the status of cases involving the killings of lawyers.

“This appeal is made to this Court, with urgency, as the effects of any such threats (arising from the police action in Calbayog) or killings of lawyers are directly detrimental to the independence of the judiciary and to the role of lawyers in ensuring fairness and justice in the judiciary’s work,” the letter stated.

Over 700 lawyers who are not faculty members joined the appeal.

Philippine National Police officer-in-charge Police Lieutenant General Guillermo Eleazar has already sacked Calbayog police intelligence unit chief Fernando Calabria Jr. from his post after the latter requested the trial court to identify the lawyers representing “communist terrorist group personalities.”

Eleazar said part of Calabria's responsibility was to come up with a comprehensive report on the communist insurgency situation in Calbayog, but the “pressure of crafting a detailed report apparently took a toll on him and eventually prompted him to commit a serious breach of policy.”

He said the PNP hierarchy did not issue any such order.

“That the top leadership of has subsequently denied any such policy does not help as the damage has been done,” the UP law professors said.

“This police action is a patent demonstration of impunity. It should not be left to stand.”—LDF, GMA News