JUST IN: President Rodrigo Duterte has signed the controversial anti-terrorism bill into law, which is feared to infringe on people's basic human rights and fundamental freedoms.
READ: philstar.com/headlines/2020
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CONTEXT: UN rights chief Michele Bachelet previously called on Duterte to veto the measure, saying the new anti-terrorism law “could have a further chilling effect on human rights and humanitarian work, hindering support to vulnerable communities.”
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CONTEXT: Law professors of the University of the Philippines also called on the chief executive to veto the measure and said that the anti-terrorism bill is a “clear and present danger.”
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CONTEXT: The heads of some of the biggest Catholic educational institutions in the country issued another joint statement earlier today, reiterating their strong opposition to the proposed anti-terrorism legislation.
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CONTEXT: Back in June, former Supreme Court Senior Associate Justice Antonio Carpio warned that the Philippines would perpetually be in a state worse than martial law if the anti-terrorism bill is signed into law.
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CONTEXT: “If it (anti-terrorism bill) is signed into law, I have told my friends I will join a petition to question constitutionality of this law,” Carpio said in a webinar last month.
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CONTEXT: When the Office of the President asked the Integrated Bar of the Philippines (IBP) for recommendations on the controversial anti-terrorism bill, the IBP told Malacañang to veto the measure, pointing out its potential infirmities.
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CONTEXT: Last Thursday, the Bangsamoro Transition Authority Parliament passed a resolution asking Duterte to veto the anti-terrorism bill "to provide Congress the opportunity to review and address the issues of vagueness, overbreadth and other concerns."
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CONTEXT: The anti-terrorism bill — which lawyers, civil society groups and the academe have warned could lead to abuse by the gov't — has largely excluded the concerns and experiences of Muslim Filipinos who are the most affected by terrorism.
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CONTEXT: Potential constitutional infirmities that former rights lawyer and now palace spokesman Harry Roque flagged in the Human Security Act of 2007 are still found in the anti-terror bill.
Roque was the one to confirm that Duterte has signed the bill.
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CONTEXT: Vice President also slammed the now Anti-Terrorism Act of 2020, saying that the House failed to include proposed amendments made by some lawmakers, and instead adopted the Senate version of the measure.
READ: philstar.com/headlines/2020
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CONTEXT: The anti-terrorism act has been criticized for its vague definition of 'terrorism.'
On top of this, the Anti-Terrorism Council, which will be the chief implementer of the law, have several members known for red-tagging.
READ: philstar.com/headlines/2020
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CONTEXT: A UN report looked into the human rights situation in the Philippines and stressed that 'red-tagging' — or labeling people as communists or terrorists—has been a “persistent and powerful threat to civil society and freedom of expression.”
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CONTEXT: Recently, the Philippine National Police has been criticized after two of its regional offices posted images accusing legal activist organizations of being communist fronts, implying also that the Anti-terrorism Act of 2020 would "put them out."
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CONTEXT: Last month, protesters against the anti-terror act were apprehended in UP Cebu despite protocols stating that members of the army and police "shall not interfere with peaceful protest actions by UP constituents within UP premises."
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CONTEXT: None of the 13 student protesters against the measure who were arrested in Iligan City were read their Miranda rights as they were apprehended by police, who later interrogated and intimidated them throughout their eight hours in detention.
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CONTEXT: The police also arrested 20 protesters during an LGBTQ+ protest against the anti-terrorism act of 2020.
Police were seen refusing to answer the media when asked which quarantine guidelines were violated by the protesters being arrested.
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CONTEXT: After a victim-blaming post from a national police Facebook page circulated online, Amihan National condemned the PNP, saying this kind of behavior would be “emboldened” once the anti-terrorism bill is turned into law.
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CONTEXT: Critics of the measure, also pointed out that some of the provisions under the Anti-Terrorism Act of 2020 violates the Bill of Rights.
Here's what's written under Article III Sections 4 and 18 of the constitution.
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CONTEXT: President Duterte signed the anti-terrorism law on the same day that the Philippines recorded the highest single-day increase of COVID-19 cases.
The public health crisis has been severly affecting millions of Filipinos for several months.
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CONTEXT: Amid growing debt, strained hospital and medical resources, more new COVID-19 cases in more parts of the Philippines, President Duterte said in a speech last June that: “Terrorism is... the number one threat to the country."
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