BLOODY SUNDAY | Lawyers’ group wants High Court to look into ‘warrant factories’ after rash of killings

March 8, 2021 , 07:10 PM

(March 8, 2021) – The Supreme Court should discipline local judges who had issued warrants against activists labeled as “terrorist” supporters after some of them ended up dead in police operations south of the capital, a lawyers’ group said on Monday.

The National Union of Peoples’ Lawyers (NUPL) said it will ask the justices to revisit court processes related to the issuance of search warrants, which clothed law enforcement agencies with authority to carry out searches and arrests that led to killings.

Josa Deinla said some regional trial court judges have abused their power and the Supreme Court can do something to address the situation.

“[Kailangang] panagutin ang mga judges by filing cases against them – those judges who evidently, by fault or by negligence, issue improvident search warrants,” Deinla told a press conference.

“Ang advise namin sa aming clients [is] that they themselves seek audience from the Supreme Court by writing them and manghingi ng pagkakataong makausap [sila] nang personal para maipakita ‘yung mga circumstances na nag-lead sa extrajudicial killings of activists.”

The justice department said it will also look into these killings, while the Commission on Human Rights also promised to take action over these attacks.

Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra said he was disappointed with the killings, more than a week after he told the United Nations Human Rights Council the police have violated its own protocols in conducting operations which led to thousands of killings, particularly in anti-drugs operations since 2016.

On Sunday, nine people were killed and at least 15 were arrested in simultaneous police operations in the Southern Tagalog region. The police were armed with multiple search warrants, at least three of which was issued by one judge from the capital.

One of the activists, Emmanuel Dela Cruz of the left-wing Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (BAYAN), was killed in Cavite during the police raid armed with a search warrant from Manila Regional Trial Court’s First Vice Executive Judge Jose Lorenzo Dela Rosa.

The NUPL said it was not the first time the Manila judge had issued warrants targeting progressives. He is also the same judge who issued a similar warrant when police raided an indigenous community in Panay Island. Nine people died in the police operations.

Based on the rules of court, the executive and vice executive judges in Manila and Quezon City can issue search warrants outside of their jurisdictions.

Deinla said judges should not easily grant the application for a search warrant without probing security forces first to identify if there indeed was probable cause in conducting the search.

Former congressman Teodoro Casiño said the Supreme Court should not merely issue new guidelines on issuing search warrants. The high court must hold local judges accountable for issuing questionable warrants often used against activists.

“Sila yung tinatawag nating warrant factories,” Casiño said.

“The SC should look into that kasi mukhang naaabuso na talaga. Kasama ‘yan sa hinihiling natin sa Korte Suprema.”

Another judge from Quezon City, Cecilyn Burgos-Villavert, was also accused of issuing warrants against activists, like the authority to search the residences of a labor organizer and a journalist in December’s International Human Rights Day. The two were freed by a court after it found the warrants faulty.

BAYAN secretary-general Renato Reyes Jr. said judges like Dela Rosa and Villavert cannot wash their hands off the accountability when police operations ended up deadly and bloody.

“We have to really point out that the judges are complicit in the killings and in the arrest of innocent people,” Reyes said.

“Di po pwedeng ministerial lang ang papel ng mga judges dito [na] impartial lang [at] wala silang kahit anong pananagutan. These judges are responsible for the killings of people because they issued warrants na ginagamit to justify the entry into the premises of these activists.”

(Beatrice Puente/MM)

Privacy Statement

Our Privacy Commitment

TV5 Network Inc. values and respects your privacy. We are committed to safeguarding your personal data in compliance with Republic Act No. 10173 or the Data Privacy Act of 2012 and its implementing rules and regulations.

We have developed a Privacy Policy that adopts and observes appropriate standards for personal data protection. While our Privacy Policy sets out the general principles governing the collection, use, and disclosure of our users’ personal information, our Privacy Commitment seeks to inform you more about TV5’s privacy practices.

Why do we collect your personal information (as applicable)?

We may collect and maintain basic information about you as site user of TV5 sites for the following purposes:

To deliver news and updates on current events, sports, esports and entertainment;
To share livestreams of news and sports events;
To understand our viewers’ needs and preferences;
To meet legal and regulatory requirements; and
To perform other processes or disclosures that are required to comply with pertinent laws, rules, or regulations.

Where do we get your personal information?

There are several ways we collect your personal information.

Information that you personally provided.

Most of the personal information we have are those that you have provided us when you:
- Register to our programs or services;
- Inquired, filed a complaint or requested for our services;
- Took part in our research and surveys; and/or
- Became our Partner, Vendor, Contractor or Supplier.

Information we collect during your engagement with us

We also collect information as you use our products and services, like:
- Viewing our websites;
- Activities that are being tracked by our website cookies;
- Calling our hotline;
- Using our apps, websites, and self-service channels and portals; and/or
- Joining our promos, prize raffles, or rewards and loyalty programs.

Information we collect from other sources

Other means of collection of information may be through:
- Our market research initiatives;
- When you visit and use our websites and mobile application; and
- Subsidiaries, affiliates, and third-party business partners to whom you have given consent to share your information to us.

When do we disclose personal information?

There may be instances when we are required to share the information you provided us. In such cases, we ensure that your personal information will be disclosed on a confidential manner, through secure channels and in compliance with the Data Privacy Act and other privacy laws.

We will never share, rent, or sell your personal information to third parties outside of TV5 except in special cases where you have given consent, and in cases described in our privacy policy.

In some instances, we may be required to disclose your personal information to our agents, subsidiaries, affiliates, business partners and other third-party agencies and service providers as part of our regular business operations and for the provision of our programs and services. This means we might share your information with our service providers, contractors, and professional advisers who help us provide our services.

How we protect your personal information

The integrity, confidentiality, and security of your information is important to us. We have implemented technical, organizational, and physical security measures that are designed to protect your information from unauthorized or fraudulent access, alteration, disclosure, misuse, and other unlawful activities.

We also put in effect the following safeguards:

We keep and protect your information using a secured server behind a firewall, encryption and security controls;
We keep your information only for as long as it is necessary for us to (a) provide the products and services that you avail from us, (b) for our legitimate business purposes, (c) to comply with pertinent laws, and (d) for special cases that will require the exercise or defense of legal claims;
We limit the access to your information only to qualified and authorized personnel who are trained to handle your information with strict confidentiality;
We undergo regular audits and rigorous testing of our infrastructure’s security protocols to ensure your data is always protected;
We promptly notify you and the National Privacy Commission when sensitive personal information that may, under the circumstances, be used to enable identity fraud are reasonably believed to have been acquired by an unauthorized person; and
We let you update your information securely to keep our records accurate.

TV5 will not collect, use, or disclose your personal information for any purpose other than the purpose that you may have given your consent for.

What are your choices?

We make sure that we have your consent to continue to collect, use, and disclose your personal information for the purposes that we have identified. We want you to know that you may object or withdraw your consent and/or edit your consent preferences at any time.

If you wish to have access to the personal information in our custody or if you think that the personal information you provided is incomplete, or otherwise inaccurate, you may get in touch with our Data Protection Officer through the contact details provided below. In some instances, we may request for supporting documents or proof before we effect requested changes.

Data Protection Officer
TV5 Network Inc.
Reliance corner Sheridan Streets
Mandaluyong City
tv5dataprivacy@tv5.com.ph

What happens when there are changes in our Policy?

From time to time, we may update our privacy policy and practices to comply with changes in applicable laws and regulatory requirements, adapt to new technologies and protocols, and align with the best practices of the industry.

You will be provided notices if the changes are significant and, if we are required by law, we will obtain your updated consent.