Makati Business Club, other groups back release of Leila de Lima | ABS-CBN

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Makati Business Club, other groups back release of Leila de Lima

Makati Business Club, other groups back release of Leila de Lima

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Senator Leila De Lima is escorted by heavy guards as she attends her hearing at the Quezon City Regional Trial Court on June 22, 2018. Jonathan Cellona, ABS-CBN News/file
Senator Leila De Lima is escorted by heavy guards as she attends her hearing at the Quezon City Regional Trial Court on June 22, 2018. Jonathan Cellona, ABS-CBN News/file

The Makati Business Club and other groups are backing calls for the release of ex-senator Leila de Lima on the sixth anniversary of her detention.

De Lima is facing 2 drug charges for allegedly conspiring to run an illegal drug trade at the New Bilibid Prison — charges which she vehemently denied, calling them political retribution for having initiated an inquiry into former President Rodrigo Duterte’s drug war campaign and the Davao Death Squad killings.

Since 2017, De Lima has been detained at the Philippine National Police (PNP) Custodial Center in Camp Crame, Quezon City, where she survived a hostage-taking incident perpetrated by three Abu Sayyaf members who attempted to escape there in October.

In a press statement, the groups urged the Marcos administration to take necessary steps to pave the way for her release based on her constitutional right to a speedy trial.

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"We believe the justifications for her detention by the previous administration have long disappeared, as witnesses recanted their testimonies," the groups said.

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"Aside from restoring her human rights, we believe her release will help
undo or avoid other human rights violations. We believe this would
contribute to the progress President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. has made in
repairing the country’s reputation, which is important to strengthening the
economy and creating more jobs for more Filipinos," it added.

The groups who signed the statement include:

  • FILIPINA CEO CIRCLE
  • JUDICIAL REFORM INITIATIVE
  • MAKATI BUSINESS CLUB
  • PHILIPPINE WOMEN’S ECONOMIC NETWORK
  • WOMEN’S BUSINESS COUNCIL PHILIPPINES

Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin “Boying” Remulla earlier urged De Lima's camp to file a petition for habeas corpus.

“Probably they should petition for habeas corpus and explain the case to the courts. We will not object,” he told the media at the New Bilibid Prison, during the release of 416 inmates who have completed serving their sentence.

“Ako (I), I am not objecting personally to any plea that will free anybody from jail,” he added.

A writ of habeas corpus is a remedy against illegal confinement or detention and directs a public official to produce a person in court and show valid reasons for detention.

While not normally available to a detainee already facing a court case, the Supreme Court recently granted the temporary release through a writ of habeas corpus petition to lawyer Jessica Lucila “Gigi” Reyes, former chief-of-staff of ex-senator and now presidential legal counsel Juan Ponce Enrile.

The SC First Division took note of Reyes’ 9 years under detention too long, calling the delays in her trial “vexatious, capricious, and oppressive.”


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