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Monday, October 24, 2005
2 labor groups seek high court aid v. Arroyo rally rules
MANILA -- Two of the country's largest labor organizations filed a petition before the Supreme Court (SC) to enjoin government officials from implementing the calibrated pre-emptive response (CPR) and the "no permit, no rally" policy.
The Kilusang Mayo Uno (KMU) and the National Federation of Labor Unions (NFLU) asked the high court to issue a writ of prohibition against respondents Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita, National Police Chief Arturo Lomibao, Manila Mayor Jose "Lito" Atienza and Manila Police Chief Pedro Bulaong.
"The adoption by respondents of the policy of CPR and their implementation of the 'no permit, no rally policy' grossly stifled the right to peaceful assembly of petitioners," the labor groups said through lawyer Remigio Saladero Jr.
"Respondents are adopting a systematic strategy for law enforcers to gradually increase the use of force ahead of a rally, that is, to head off a rally by means of calculated means to dampen the efforts of rallyists and demonstrators through the show or use of force. The policy has a chilling effect on the right of the people to exercise their right to assemble peaceably," petitioners added.
On October 14, party-list groups Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (Bayan), Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas (KMP), and rights groups and advocates Courage, Gabriela, Fr. Jose Dizon, Renato Constantino Jr. and other victims of violent police dispersals, filed a similar petition before the SC.
KMU and NFLU, in a consolidated petition, said the high court should strike down for unconstitutionality Sections 4, 5, 6, 12, 13 and 14 of Batas Pambansa (BP) 880 or the Public Assembly Act, which impose the "no permit, no rally" policy.
The law further contravenes Section 4, Article 3 of the 1987 Constitution, which guarantees the right of a citizen to peaceably assemble and petition the government for redress of grievances.
Petitioners also asked the SC to void CPR in lieu of the "maximum tolerance" policy during public rallies as there is no law, executive or administrative order, embodying the rule.
As a labor center espousing militants and nationalist trade unionism, KMU said it has been in the forefront of the struggle for the promotion and protection of labor rights for the past 25 years.
In pursuing their ideals, labor groups said they have relied on the conduct of peaceful mass actions as a mode of expression for their grievances, but this has been curtailed by the implementation of the alleged "repressive" Arroyo policies.
They said the Arroyo administration had chosen to implement CPR and BP 880, a law signed by former President Ferdinand Marcos, although it has already been superseded with the adoption of the 1987 Constitution.
Under Section 4, Article 3 of the 1987 Constitution, "no law shall be passed abridging the freedom of speech, of expression, or of the press, or the right of the people to peaceably assemble and petition the government for redress of grievances."
They further said Article 3 Section 4 does not provide for any qualification or limitation on the citizenry's right to peaceful assembly, and assuming that the right to peaceful assembly may be subjected to reasonable limitations, the limitations provided under sections of BP 880 are "unreasonable and effectively nullify such a right."
They said until the Sept. 21, 2005 announcement of Ermita as regards the enforcement of CPR and BP 880, local government units and law enforcers viewed the law with laxity.
"Rallies and public assemblies were thus tolerated despite the lack of permits for their conduct. Due to this reason, cause-oriented groups who usually staged rallies or public assemblies never bothered to assail the validity or constitutionality of the law (BP 880)," the petition read.
The CPR further allowed local government heads, particularly respondent Atienza to clamp down on rallies and public assemblies through "sinister and crafty utilization of the provisions of BP 880, thereby stifling the right of petitioners and other sectors of society to engage in rallies." (ECV/Sunnex)
(October 24, 2005 issue)
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