More on the "anti-opposition"... este "anti-terror" bill pala

From Ernie Maceda:

Parañaque City Rep. Roilo Golez has withdrawn his authorship of the anti-terrorism bill. Golez said the bill as reported out by the House justice committee is an “anti-opposition bill,” suggesting that it would be another weapon to suppress the rights of the citizens and “would allow a crackdown on senators and congressmen.”

Surprisingly, some administration congressmen, led by Lanao del Sur Rep. Benasing Macarambon, agree with Golez's opinion. Macarambon said: “I can't take this. This is too much,” adding the definition of terrorism in the bill actually “describes Muslims.”

“Muslim and political dissenters will be among the top candidates to be victimized by the bill,” Anak Mindanao party-list Rep. Mujiv Hataman said.

Dean Pacifico Agabin of the Lyceum of the Philippines College of Law called the bill “constitutionally suspect” because it is “couched in vague and over broad terms, in violation of the substantive due process and the right to fair notice clause of the Constitution.”

Agabin said the bill was worse than the United States Patriot Act — enacted following the 9/11 attacks — because all criminal acts in the Revised Penal Code would fall under it, thus altering the Philippine criminal justice system.

“The proposed bill tries to cast as wide a net as possible and so it suffers not only from ambiguity but also from overbreadth,” he said, stressing that it would give way to a “fishing expedition” of the police.”

According to Agabin, the definition of terrorism as proposed in Section 3 of the bill “deviates from what is popularly understood to be the common denominator of terrorist acts; the objective is usually political, and there is a retaliatory quality to such activity against targets perceived to belong to a society of oppressors.”

Rep. Simeon Datumanong gave the chilling opinion that rallies that result in panic or fear to the public could fall under the bill's definition of acts of terror.

This is a delicate piece of legislation that must be thoroughly debated and examined line by line. The problem is compounded by the propensity of the Arroyo government not only to effect warrantless arrests, but to expand and stretch also its reading of the law and the Constitution, to suit its political interests. The problem is doubly compounded by the record of the Supreme Court to be usually supportive of GMA's positions.

Congressmen must think thrice before they pass a law that can be used to hold them hostage and subservient to the executive's demand. Once it becomes a law, it applies to all, including congressmen and their families with the executive this time saying not only “dura lex sed lex” but also, “you passed this law.”

Under the proposed law, a penalty of life imprisonment to death with a fine of P10 million is imposed on those violating the law.

This bill presents a clear and present danger to all protesters and rallyists and is in aid of repression and stifling dissent.

Constitutionalists Senators Joker Arroyo, Miriam Defensor-Santiago and Aquilino Pimentel Jr. must join hands to prevent its passage.