SC justice: Philippines no extradition treaty with Spain

Tuesday, November 22, 2011

MANILA -- A Supreme Court justice said the Philippines has no extradition treaty with Spain, one of the countries listed by former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo in her proposed travel itinerary.

Justice Lourdes Sereno, an appointee of President Benigno Aquino III, said Tuesday that Arroyo’s lawyers failed to recognize the fact that the Philippines only had an agreement with transfer of convicted persons with Spain.

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The Senate ratified this treaty in 2009.

“We don’t have an extradition treaty with Spain yet,” Sereno told Arroyo’s legal counsel Anacleto Diaz during the oral arguments on the Department of Justice Circular 41, which was used to bar the Arroyos from leaving the country last week.

Department of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Raul Hernandez also confirmed to Sun.Star that extradition treaty between the Philippines and Spain (dated March 2, 2004) is still awaiting Senate concurrence.

Arroyo also expressed interest to travel to Germany and Singapore, which also have no extradition treaty with the Philippines. This means that a host country cannot deport Arroyo even if there are cases lodged against her.

Arroyo has since denied that she is seeking political asylum in Dominican Republic despite reports stating otherwise.

The Office of Solicitor General earlier said Arroyo holds a diplomatic passport issued on August 11, 2009 while she was still President.

Being a holder of a diplomatic passport, Arroyo will be given immunity as a former head-of-state in other jurisdictions and may exempt her from extradition or a Philippine request for deportation.

"If and when allowed to travel abroad, the risk that the former President will be fugitive from justice is not remote. She has certainly the means and resources to remain abroad for an indefinite period of time and, in the process, thwart the pending criminal investigations," Solicitor General Jose Anselmo Cadiz said.

Last week, immigration officers blocked Arroyo and her husband Jose Miguel from boarding a plane to Hong Kong and Singapore despite the Court’s approval for her medical treatment.

Arroyo is now under hospital arrest after she was tagged in alleged rigging of senatorial election results in 2007.

Justice Secretary Leila de Lima was pleased with the outcome of the three-hour oral arguments Tuesday.

"Must there be a law really, to be able to restrict one's right to travel? That's precisely our argument. That's part of our inherent powers because we prosecute the offenders. It was a good point for us,” she said.

Fourteen out of 15 justices are in attendance for the public debate. The government, represented by Cadiz, is set to present his arguments before the Court on Thursday.

Before the oral arguments, Arroyo’s husband Jose Miguel was removed from the watchlist order after he was excluded from the poll sabotage raps.

Others who were stricken off the list were former presidential spokesperson Gabriel Claudio, his former chief of staff Bong Serrano, ex-Justice Secretary Alberto Agra, lawyer Andrei Bon Tagum, Romy Dayday, Jeremy Javier and a certain Butch.

“Accordingly, their names are hereby ordered deleted from the Bureau of Immigration’s watch list, unless they are the subject of a watch list/hold-departure order in any other cases,” the order, signed by Chief State Counsel Ricardo Paras III on Monday, said. (Sunnex)