Arroyo Admin: No permit, no rally! Arrest protesters without permit!

From the Tribune:

In a virtual imposition of martial law, President Arroyo yesterday ordered that Makati City will no longer be a place for rallies by the political opposition.

The Chief Executive's order rams the consti-tutional rights of a local chief executive, in this case Makati Mayor Jejomar Binay, an opposition leader and among those calling for the resignation of Mrs. Arroyo.

The President's order would automatically nullify any permit granted by Binay to any group.

Mrs. Arroyo's move, according to a Malacañang official who yesterday spoke on condition of anonymity, was aimed at thwarting the opposition from garnering “millions of people” in protest marches that would “sway” idealistic members of the police and the military to break the chain of command and cause the downfall of the President.

In a statement, Mrs. Arroyo said, “The com-muters, the pedestrians, the students and the business sectors have complained about the inconvenience and the disruption of the busi-nesses resulting in economic losses, in millions of pesos, especially in commercial districts of Makati City. We cannot let this continue!”

So bawal nang mag-conduct ng anti-Arroyo rallies unless binigyan tayo ng "permission" ni Mrs. Arroyo? Sino ba ang akala niya sa sarili nya, si Ferdinand Marcos??? Napaka-unconstitutional ng Arroyo rule na yan!

Recently, the Arroyo admin wanted to ban live political and public affairs shows too unless it gets approval from Arroyo's MTRCB. Natatakot kasi si GMA na baka marami pang baho ang lumabas sa kanyang admin on these tv shows. Katulad ng PROBE team expose re PAGCOR... well, Jose Pidal and Efraim Genuino "took care" of them, if you know what i mean... ;)

Kaya tignan mo ang nangyari, naging tameme na ang ABS-CBN at GMA7, according to de Quiros:

Ms Arroyo has corrupted the media, two of the biggest networks now censoring criticism of her or poking fun at her in their sitcoms.

More from Abante:

Estilong Martial Law ang ipatutupad ng Malacañang hinggil sa mga anti-GMA rallies dahil binigyan nito ng kapangyarihan ang Philippine National Police (PNP) simula kahapon na magsagawa ng pag-aresto at i-disperse ang lahat ng mga nagpoprotesta laban sa gobyerno.

Ang babala ay nanggaling kay Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita matapos nitong ibunyag na may natanggap silang impormasyon na may ilang anti-GMA groups ang sasamantalahin ang mga serye ng kilos-protesta upang mapabagsak ang kasalukuyang liderato.

Ani Ermita, mahigpit na nilang ipatutupad ang ‘rule of calibrated preemptive response’ na ang ibig sabihin ay hindi na nila puwedeng balewalain ang batas sakaling may mga grupo na nanggugulo sa lansangan.

Maliban sa PNP ay inatasan din umano ng palasyo ang mga sangkot na local government units (LGUs) na ipatupad ang buong puwersa ng batas laban sa mga anti-GMA rallies.

From Malaya:

Gloria: Arrest protesters sans permits

PRESIDENT Arroyo yesterday said protesters holding "illegal assemblies" in pursuit of their calls for her resignation will be arrested and charged.

"I am tired of chasing bullies around the school yard. Iyung mga tatanggap sa aking panawagang magkaisa, welcome. Iyung mga hindi tumatanggap at patuloy na manggugulo, we – from the top to the barangay officials – will enforce the rule of law," she said during the 1st Regional Congress of the Liga ng mga Barangay-Region 3 at the Expo-Filipino at the Clark Special Economic Zone in Pampanga.

"The commuters, the pedestrians, the students, and the business sectors have complained about the inconvenience and the disruption of the businesses resulting in economic losses, in millions of pesos, especially in the commercial districts of Makati City. We cannot let this continue," she said.

And here's the Malaya Editorial on the issue:

GLORIA Arroyo says she is growing tired of running after bullies. Her critics, she says, should accept the throwing out by the House of the impeachment of the complaints against her. Those who do not, she says, should be prepared to face the "rule of the law."

Okay, so assuming we do not accept the ruling of the House and insist on shouting to the whole world that Gloria is a liar, a cheat and a thief, what crime have we committed? If we and like-minded others band together to make our voices heard through rallies and demonstrations, we’re perfectly within our rights. The Constitution says so.

But no, says Gloria. We cannot do that because businessmen are complaining of inconvenience and disruption resulting in loss of millions of pesos. The last time we checked with the Bill of Rights, however, there is no provision protecting businessmen from inconvenience or from losing money.

Gloria’s executive secretary, Eduardo Ermita, says demonstrations and rallies have gone out of hand. He says that even now, meetings are being held to organize more streets protests. It seems, Ermita said, the opposition will not stop in their calls for Gloria’s resignation or ouster.

But where’s the law that says one can’t continue shouting "Gloria must go"? The provisions of the penal code penalizing inciting to sedition or rebellion? The catch here is that one cannot ban a rally on mere suspicion that speakers might call on the people to withdraw their loyalty from the government or to take up arms against it. That’s prior restraint on the exercise of a constitutionally guaranteed right.

Actually Gloria and her subalterns have no one to blame but themselves for the rallies in Makati which are what the businessman are complaining about. Mayors Lito Atienza of Manila and Sonny Belmonte of Quezon routinely reject applications to hold rallies. Or if they do approve a permit, they shunt the protesters to some place where they cannot be seen or heard.

It so happens that Makati Mayor Jojo Binay does not ban rallies in his city. The reason might well be because he is with the opposition. That, however, is beside the point. He respects the people’s right to peaceably assemble to seek redress for their grievances. He should be lauded for it.

Ferdinand Marcos knew he could not ban rallies even as protesters had laid siege to Malacañang on two occasions in January 1970. Bigger and more bigger rallies would follow after the First Quarter of 1970.

He suspended the writ in August 1971, but the street protests went on. He did the only constitutionally sanctioned way to stop the waves of demonstrations. He suspended the Bill of Rights by declaring martial law.

That’s the honest way to quash the political opposition. And frankly, before Gloria elevated lying to a high art, we could not string a simple sentence containing the words "Marcos" and "honesty."

UPDATE: Edwin Lacierda comments on Mayor Atienza and Belmonte.