Philippine senator defies Duterte’s arrest order in Senate standoff
Antonio Trillanes IV said his lawyers would file a petition to the Supreme Court to challenge the president’s proclamation voiding his amnesty.
A Philippine senator who is the president’s fiercest critic in Congress remains holed up in the Senate to avoid what he considers an illegal arrest after Rodrigo Duterte voided his amnesty for his role as a rebel military officer.
Antonio Trillanes IV told reporters after staying overnight in the Senate that his lawyers would file a petition to the Supreme Court to challenge the legality of Mr Duterte’s proclamation voiding his amnesty for taking part in failed coup attempts years ago.
The president also ordered the Department of Justice and the military to pursue criminal and administrative complaints against Mr Trillanes, a former navy officer.
Mr Trillanes told the police and military not to follow Mr Duterte’s “illegal order” for him to be arrested without a court warrant, saying his rebellion and coup cases were dismissed in 2011 without being questioned by the government after he took up an amnesty offered by Mr Duterte’s predecessor.
The order, which was made public on Tuesday while Mr Duterte was on a trip to Israel, has sparked a legal debate. Some experts have questioned whether the president can invalidate a rebel amnesty declared by a previous president and approved by legislators.
Justice secretary Menardo Guevarra told a news conference Mr Duterte voided the amnesty because the senator had failed to comply with all of its requirements, including a clear admission of his involvement in past coup attempts.
Mr Trillanes cannot invoke his congressional immunity from arrest because the crimes he allegedly committed, including rebellion, were serious and punishable by life imprisonment, Mr Guevarra said.
The news reports showed an image of his amnesty application, which officials said they could not find, and carried remarks by Mr Trillanes acknowledging his participation in the uprisings.
“That presidential declaration should alarm the justices of the Supreme Court because Duterte there exercises executive, legislative and judicial powers,” he said.
“If they affirm the presidential declaration, the president can issue warrants of arrest.”
Military spokesman Colonel Edgard Arevalo said Mr Trillanes “will be reverted to his status as active military personnel subject to military law and military discipline”.
The 47-year-old former navy officer was detained for several years before his election to the Senate for involvement in three military uprisings from 2003 to 2007 to protest over government corruption.
Mr Duterte has openly expressed anger against Mr Trillanes, who has accused him of large-scale corruption and involvement in illegal drugs.
