Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, December 16) — Two pastors and a former barangay captain red-tagged by the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) have won temporary protection from the Supreme Court (SC).
The three are members of the United Church of Christ in the Philippines who filed a petition for a writ of amparo before the high court last month after being accused by the AFP of being members of the New People’s Army.
“The officers and enlisted personnel of the 59th IB have implanted a genuine and crippling fear in the minds of petitioners,” the petition read.
In a decision made public on Friday, the SC granted the temporary protection order, which prohibits the military from going within a radius of one kilometer from the petitioners and their families.
A writ of amparo can be filed by any person whose right to life, liberty, and security is violated or threatened with violation by an unlawful act or omission of a public official or employee, or of a private individual or entity.
READ: SC issues writ of amparo for 2 missing activists
Gilbert Andres, the legal counsel of the petitioners, said the high court’s ruling is a “sobering reminder to Philippine State forces to respect the right to life, liberty, and security of our petitioners.”
The respondents were given 20 days to comment, and make a verified return of the writ stating their legal defenses.
