Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana on Monday asked those who are opposing the Anti-Terror Act to read the whole bill first and not just focus on selected provisions.
“‘Yung mga sumasama lang diyan sa nag-o-oppose, pwede ba basahin niyo muna ‘yung anti-terror bill bago kayo sumama diyan? Dahil’ yung mga lumalabas ngayon ay all misinformation and disinformation,” he said.
(Those who are joining the opposition, can you please read the anti-terror bill first? There a lot of misinformation and disinformation going out right now.)
Critics said there are provisions in the bill that are “vague” and “broad” that could be prone to abuse by law enforcers and military personnel.
Senator Panfilo Lacson, however, denied the accusations, saying, “There’s no vagueness in the crafting of the bill or in the definition of terrorism itself because it is clearly defined. There are delimitations. While we have included five acts that would constitute acts of terrorism, we made it very clear that the purpose of such acts by its nature and context, it should be taken into consideration.”
Among the controversial sections of the Anti-Terrorism Bill are warrantless arrests and the abolition of the provision of the Human Security Act of 2007, which provides P500,000 damages per day to any terrorist suspect who is found to be innocent.
Also read: Duterte can still veto Anti-Terror bill-Lacson
“Ang ini-emphasize ko nga noon pa ay there is enough safeguards, there [are] so many safeguards (on) civil liberties, ‘yung human rights ng mga tao. Hindi naman basta-basta dadamputin ng law enforcement agent ‘yung tao,” Lorenzana explained.
(What I have been emphasizing ever since is that there [are] some safeguards to safeguard the civil liberties and human rights of the people. The law enforcement agencies could not arrest anybody quickly.)
Under the Anti-Terror Act, an Anti-Terrorism Council (ATC) would be created, which would approve or disapprove the warrantless arrest of a suspected terrorist.
“Remember that what we are talking about here is the crime of terrorism only. The ATC is deeply involved in the daily monitoring of terrorism, and it would know if an application is warranted or not,” Lorenzana said.
” The courts, who do not monitor terrorism on a day to day basis, may not be able to determine if a warrantless arrest is warranted or not. Speed is needed to prevent terrorism that’s why the ATC was created,” he added.