Ban on short-time stay in motels unconstitutional - SC

MANILA, Philippines - The Supreme Court (SC) Thursday declared as unconstitutional a Manila City ordinance prohibiting short-term admissions in hotels, motels, inns, lodging houses and similar establishments, noting this was not a solution to curbing illicit activities — the local law’s intent. In a 32-page decision penned by Associate Justice Dante O. Tinga, the full court said the ordinance "rashly equates wash rates and renting out a room more than twice a day with immorality without accommodating innocuous intentions." In a text message, Mayor Alfredo S. Lim said: "Whatever the decision is, [we] will follow." The city council approved the ordinance on Dec. 3, 1992 to curb illegal sex and drug trade that allegedly proliferated in such establishments. It prohibited the so-called wash-up rates, or abbreviated stay, as well as renting out a room more than twice a day. Malate Tourist and Development Corp., owner and operator of Victoria Court, initially sought to quash the ordinance, but later on backtracked. The SC decision did not state the reason for the withdrawal. A cease and desist order was issued on the ordinance through a succeeding intervention case filed by White Light Corp., Titanium Corp. and Sta. Mesa Tourist and Development Corp. — all subsidiaries of the Anito Group of Companies. Violation of right to privacy The three groups claimed the ordinance violated their customers’ rights to privacy and freedom of movement, and that it was an oppressive interference to their businesses. In 1993, the Manila Regional Trial Court sided with the petitioners, and noted that the ordinance "strikes at the personal liberty of the individual guaranteed and jealously guarded by the Constitution." It noted that the local law did not solve the occurrence of illegal activities. The Court of Appeals, however, reversed the decision, saying the ordinance was only meant to curb immoral activities, not the operation of the establishment. The case was haled to the high court. "Even as the implementation of moral norms remains an indispensable complement to governance, that prerogative is hardly absolute, especially in the face of the norms of due process of liberty," the Supreme Court said. While police power is paramount, "personal rights and those pertaining to private property will not be permitted to be arbitrarily invaded," it added. Family time The high court said the wash rates could be used by families choosing to pass the time in hotels and motels. "Any person or groups of persons in need of comfortable private spaces for a span of a few hours with purposes other than having sex or using illegal drugs can legitimately look to staying in a motel," it said. It noted that "less intrusive measures such as curbing the proliferation of prostitutes and drug dealers through active police work would be more effective in easing the situation." "Urban decay is a fact of mega-cities such as Manila, and vice is a common problem confronted by the modern metropolis wherever in the world. "The solution to such perceived decay is not to prevent legitimate businesses from offering a legitimate product," the high court said. — Ira P. Pedrasa, BusinessWorld